Mates: Book Two
by Sibaas
Summary: The Martian Gods strengthen the bond between Bruce and J'onn, thus saving Bruce's life. But at what price? Can Bruce cope with the changes? The other Leaguers find out about the bond, and not all of them are happy with it. And what about Earth's Gods?
1. No!

()

"Bruce? Bruce, can you hear me?"

Bruce slowly opened his eyes, blinking slightly as he realized he could fully make out the figures, even if things were just slightly hazy. His ears weren't ringing as much, but there was still a faint buzz sounding in the back of his mind, and he knew that by the time today ended, he'd probably have a big headache.

Why was he in the hospita-- oh right. He'd almost died.

And then there had been Gods. And a fight. Then...he'd said things.

Oh god.

Things. He'd said _things_. Out loud.

Things he hadn't intended on ever sharing with anyone. He must have really been on the brink of death. Taking in a deep breath, because really there was nothing he could do about it now, he assessed the situation. No one was inside the room beside him and...

And J'onn.

He stared up at the Martian with half closed eyes, taking in the way his body was slightly hunched over, and how just plain _worn out_ the alien looked. The ringing in his ears increased sharply, causing him to gasp out in pain.

J'onn tensed beside him and after another second the ringing died backed down to buzzing, and Bruce quickly put two and two together.

"What...are you doing?" He kept his voice low, not wanting to break his concentration.

A few minutes passed without an answer, and just when he was about to ask again, only not as polite, the Martian replied, "You...don't recall much of what happened, do you?" J'onn paused at hearing the Bat growl and allowed himself a smile. If he was getting grumpy then that meant he was feeling back to his normal self.

Which was relieving, considering how he was close to dying not three hours ago. And all because of...

"_J'onn_--"

Right, there would be time to be angry later. Now he needed to explain things to Bruce.

Kind of hard to do, seeing how he needed to keep all his mental energy focused on the mental blocks inside Bruce's mind but he didn't really have a choice. His mate was getting more frustrated and if it kept up, then things were going to get really bad really fast.

So he gathered up all the energy he had left and tried to explain as best as he possibly could.

"When Martian Civilization was at its peak, there was some consideration as to what our future would be like. A prophet speculated that we would give up emotions for intelligence. It seemed very plausible due to the fact that some of us were considering it at the time. But what shocked us was what the prophet said afterwards. He said that due to our giving up emotions, we would soon loose interest in procreation, and as a result, we would stop mating." He paused to check on the mental blocks before continuing.

"Martians live a very long time but even we have our limits. If that were to happen, we would, eventually, die out. Our Gods refused to let that happen. Thus 'The Heat' was created. It basically causes us to mate. Anyone in Heat who consummates with another, will cause that other person to also go into Heat, thus continuing the cycle. The result is a rise in population. However, due to the strain it causes on our bodies, it only happens once every ten thousand years."

The blocks were starting to weaken so he added a bit more energy into them. At this rate...

He sighed. "Due to one of my Gods, H'ronmeer, I entered into heat eight thousand years earlier than I was expected to. When I made contact with you, you smelled the sweat, which has compounds similar to pheromones, and we then proceeded to mate."

Bruce's eyes narrowed a bit, as he took in what this meant. "If the Heat causes that much strain on _your_ body then..." Slanted eyes widened. "It would cause a human's body to--"

J'onn nodded. "Correct."

"How is it possible I'm even alive?" Bruce asked, leaning back into the pillows of the bed, his mind racing.

While the alien didn't show it, he could still tell how aggravated J'onn was with the situation, as he said, "My Gods came up with a solution to the problem." The mental blocks were weakening immensely so he had to stop in order to concentrate. He'd never had this much trouble with anyone before and it was starting to frustrate him.

Bruce went to add his own assessment to the situation, when he felt a presence in his mind. Logic told him that it was J'onn, and that whatever he was doing was helping him, but it was instinct that caused him to push the force out with as much strength as possible, his training overriding his judgment.

In battle, that was a good thing, as it kept his body from being taken over by others.

But now, as the presence was shoved out and Bruce felt his senses suddenly explode and started writhing in pain, he found himself wishing his training wasn't quite so precise.

The second the metal blocks slipped and J'onn found himself being literally pushed out of Bruce's mind, the Martian was alert, his concern increasing as Bruce let out a scream. Considering the man's high tolerance for pain, J'onn knew that what his mate was feeling had to be very agonizing.

He forced himself to calm down and tried to sneak the mental blocks back in place...

"GET AWAY FROM HIM!" Came a shocking roar, and J'onn felt himself being shoved away from Bruce by Superman who then...

_Proceeded to touch Bruce._

"NO!"

()

I hope ya liked it. ;


	2. System overload

()

Superman only needed a split second to take in everything.

Bruce's jerking body, his dilated pupils, racing heartbeat, and harsh breathing. And how his screams got louder the second he made contact with his skin. How it was happening was beyond him, but he _did_ know one thing;

Bruce's senses were overloading, and if it kept up he was going to send himself into cardiac arrest. His hold tightened on his friend, as he whispered, because anything louder was going to be painful, he was sure, "Bruce..." No, he needed to talk to Batman for this. "_Batman, you need to focus. You hear my heartbeat? Listen to it._" The screams lessened ever so slightly, as the Bat fought to do what Kal was asking him to, but there was so much, _so much_ and he couldn't make out--

"_Listen to it. It has a rhythm. I know it's hard, and painful, but you have to try_."

Rhythm...yes...he could hear it. The steady beating of his heart, and the machines, and thoughts-- he was hearing them all. Too loud.

"_Listen to it, Batman. Only my heart. Focus on it._"

The screaming died down in volume, but his heart rate was still beating incredibly fast, and that was when Clark realized that it was more than his hearing, _all _Bruce's senses were going haywire. But...how...?

_**J'onn...**_

No time for that right now. Biting his lip, Clark carefully maneuvered Bruce's body, until he was holding him in his lap. Bruce's breathing increased but he didn't let go. "_Can you feel me touching you, Bruce? The texture of my skin, the roughness of it against yours? Focus on it. It has a different texture than the clothes covering you. See?_"

See? He pried his eyes open to do so, only to be blinded by the brightness of the light and the colors which were just so _vivid _and things were swirling, not making any sense and how was he supposed to _see?! _

"C...can't see..." Bruce grounded out, the ringing in his ears coming back only tenfold and thoughts, thoughts were entering his head again--

"_Bruce, look at my eyes._" Clark ordered, tilting Bruce's head upward, so it would be easier. "_See how blue they are? Focus on that. Remember my heart? Listen to that. Your sheets, the texture of my skin, feel that._"

At the same time? The same time? Couldn't do it. He couldn't...too much, it was too much too much too much toomu--

"_**Focus**__._"

With grim determination and willpower formed from a lifetime of training, Bruce tried to do as Clark ordered, but he couldn't remember, not with the thoughts swirling, all the thoughts of the Justice League in his head.

Hawk Girl...

_What's going on in there?_

Flash...

_Duuuude..._

Green Lantern...

_Should we go in? Don't want to make it worse but..._

Wonder Woman...

_Hera...please be alright Batman..._

He could hear them all.

_Focus. Come on Bruce, you can do it. Please focus._

And Clark. He could hear Clark's thoughts too.

His eyes were a vivid blue. Different in shade compared to his, and he could even make out the irises. He lost himself in those eyes, focusing on how the shade kept shifting from one color of blue to the other. His heart beat was strong and steady, beating a little fast, but only just, and he listened to the sound of it, let it fill his mind, along with how his sheets felt, and how _rough _everything was than he was used to.

Completely drained both emotionally and physically, Bruce drifted off to sleep, listening to the sound of Kal's heart beat.

However, he couldn't stop himself from thinking...

_Where did...J'onn go?_

()

When he saw Bruce was starting to calm down, J'onn quietly made his exit, surprising the other leaguers, who had all been standing by the door, nervously listening to what was going on. He paid them no mind as he passed by, his thoughts still lingering on what had just happened.

His fault.

It was his fault it had happened. He should have explained to Bruce what he was doing before he had even said anything else. But he hadn't expected Bruce to be able to push him out just like that, not in his weakened state anyway.

Obviously he'd underestimated his mate, and as a result Bruce had nearly died—again. Due to him. Again. A pattern seemed to be developing and he wasn't sure if it was just coincidence or...

Or maybe he really had no idea just how a human worked.

"_You seem to forget that you yourself are an alien, Kal-__**El**__."_

"_**I'm more human than you'll ever be.**__"_

Clark was the one who had been able to calm Bruce down, not him. He'd been the cause of his distress. They were both aliens, but Kal was alien by genetics only. When it came down to it, he was for all purposes, human. He'd lived with them since he was a child. J'onn had only been here for a few years.

J'onn slumped against the wall, sliding slowly into a sitting position. Already he'd gotten Bruce nearly killed, twice, and things were just starting out. The first time was because he'd overestimated Bruce, the second time was when he _under_estimated him. He just couldn't seem to get it right.

He buried his head in his heads, feeling hopelessly lost as he sensed Bruce's despair fading away, due to _Superman's_ help. Not his. Superman's. Who was an alien, just like him, only he _wasn't_. Truth was they were nothing alike.

Nothing.

How was he supposed to make this work?


	3. OhMyGod

I apologize for the long wait in updating. Hopefully this chapter will make up with it. :bows:

()

The second he was sure Bruce out like a lamp, Clark flew out of the room and _demanded _to know just what the hell was going on. The only thing that kept him from shouting was because Bruce was sleeping and because...well...

J'onn actually looked like he was ready to cry.

Which was kind of weird, seeing how Martians didn't have tear ducts and thus technically _couldn't_ cry, but...J'onn was starting to make Kal doubt his knowledge of Martian anatomy. And he was sure that the others would start shouting if he _did_ somehow manage to make J'onn cry, thus waking up Bruce, so he asked the question again, trying to make his voice as gentle as possible.

The result was him sounding like a cheese grater but hey, at least he was trying.

J'onn gave them the same rundown he did Bruce, his voice low and apathetic. The Leaguers were very tempted to just leave the poor alien alone, but...well...they had questions.

And Diana's question was, "But how does that explain what's happening to Batman?"

He sighed tilting his head to look up at the ceiling, away from their questioning eyes. "The Heat put a lot of stress on his body. It has...opened up parts of his brain that he is not prepared for."

Flash glanced towards Superman, who was starting to glare at J'onn again. Trying to avert his attention he asked, "How'd you know what to do?"

The plan seemed to work, as Clark smiled slightly, his eyes fogging over as he recalled faint memories. "I went through the same thing Bruce is going through when my powers first showed up. Everything was loud and _hurt_. It was my Ma' who helped me through it. I always wondered how she knew what to do but.." A shrug. "She said it was just a mother's instinct."

Green Lantern interrupted his trip down memory lane, stating in a frank voice, "Well he can't stay here if his senses are going crazy. My guess is he needs a quiet place, and well this isn't exactly it."

Silence. He was right, this they knew. But how in the hell were they going to convince Bruce? One didn't _tell_ Batman to do anything. Unless one was Alfred. But none of them were.

Hawk Girl groaned. "Crap."

()

The lights were off in the hospital room. Machines, which normally would have been beeping, were also powered down. Probably due to Bruce's sensitivity. But even though it was dark, they didn't need light to see the emotion that was playing on Bruce's face.

After talking to each other for what seemed like hours, while waiting for Bruce to awaken, they had decided that they were just not going to give him an option. Just...tell him that he was being exiled from the tower until he learned to control his new abilities.

Had spent hours, rehearsing what they would say, what they would do to insure that Batman would not have his way.

Yet...the _rage_...none of them had been prepared for the rage. Then again...how could one prepare for such a thing?

That was the one emotion that flashed through those blue eyes. Rage. Only, this type of rage was so horrifying, it caused several of them to take at _least_ half a step back. If not more. In fact, Flash was practically standing in the hallway now.

And still going.

Bruce decided to keep his death short when he finally did snap. Which wouldn't be too far off.

Flash, feeling the gaze of death on him lessen slightly, let out a sigh of relief. He would live.

(Little does he know...)

_Clark_ on the other hand...

Would probably die.

Of course, the speedster knew that the chances of Bruce actually killing Clark without the help of Kryptonite were...

Well...

Higher than most...

And in his present condition, kind of unlikely but...

One could never underestimate the power of the 'Bat-Glare'.

Oh no. It had powers. Magical powers. Like the power to make your pants suddenly become soaked. When you haven't had anything to drink all day. Magic. Ooo..

He felt the gaze land on him again and struggled to keep his mind blank. Crap. He was _really _bad when it came to shielding his thoughts from others. In fact, he was partially convinced that was why J'onn avoided eye contact with him half the time. And if Bruce was picking up on thoughts that were especially loud...

Green eyes widened behind the mask.

_Oh.My.God._

Batman had the ability to piss off everyone around him, in just the span of an hour. If even that. He was sure that even _nuns_ would find themselves saying 'Goddamn know it all..freaking son of..', if they ever did come across the Bat.

_That could be why Bats doesn't usually hang around churches...because he's scared of making a nun swear...and going to hell because of it. _

Making a nun swear...that was like instant going to hell material, wasn't it?

The glare on him was starting to intensify.

Crap. His thoughts. Aaaa he couldn't stop them!

That was the always the good part about Bats not having any powers. Because when he _did_ piss everyone off they could curse him _lower_ than a dog—and not get the glare-of-death thrown at them. Or worse. That _smirk_ of his. That 'ha-ha I'm getting under your skin' smirk. Something which was really annoying.

But it was okay. Usually when Batman used that smirk, Flash would spend five minutes dreaming of what it would be like to be able to wipe that smirk off. Most of them involved murder. A few involved a lot of lubrication and--

"FLASH."

His head, which had drooped down sometime during his mental ramblings, snapped up. Painfully. Ow. He spent a second rubbing it before realizing that everyone was staring at him. Which reminded him of the fact that Bats just heard what he'd been thinking about. Which led him back to his first thought.

_Oh.My.God._

Breathe. He needed to do that right now. In. Out. In. Out. Inoutinoutintouinoutinoutinoutinoutinout--

"You okay?" Wonder Woman asked, blinking as Flash shrieked, "LUBRICATION?! WHAT?! NO! BATS! NOTHING! YOU KNOW NOTHING!"

Something which caused Bruce's glare to intensify. He'd probably seriously hurt his eardrums just now. But he couldn't find it in himself to care.

They were still staring at him.

Except Batman.

He...

No...

He wouldn't...

He...

He was actually...

_Smirking_.

Bastard!

Nonononononononononononono—the thoughts were starting up. Except the word lubrication was circling through his head, over and over again. So he automatically skipped the murder and went right to the--

"FLASH!"

The fastest man alive whimpered. He was trying to stop really, he was, but Batman...it was his own fault really. _He_ was the one who smirked and--

_Moans. Thrusting. Lots of..._

"_**FLASH.**__"_

He let out a manly scream. Manly. Oh yes. Not girly in any way.

"AAAHHH!! I'M GONNA DIE!!" And then he ran. Far far away.

()

I have no clue if Batman hangs around churches or not. So... xD I'm going with not. Also, Flash in my mind, is bisexual. He likes sex. :shrugs: Man, woman, it's all the same to him. He just wants to have a good time. XD So no, I don't believe he's gay, and this isn't my attempt at a like...weird...triangle...rectangle...love...thing with...Bats, J'onn and Supes. No...it's just...Flash...being Flash.


	4. Uh, oops?

A/N: You'll be kind of mad/happy to know that I have a lot of this story written, I just needed to write one part to put in between and I hit a writer's block. But I was answering reviews and :shrugs: I was just feelin the vibe, I guess.

Yes, that is the only reason I haven't updated this story. That and the fact that I've been working on Mars: An Elseworlds Story.

No I will not give you my home address so you can kill meh in mah sleep. XD

HERE IT IS PEOPLES!!

()

The halls of Mount Olympus were buzzing with energy as Gods from all over appeared in the room, their voices getting louder and louder. Some with rage, others with amusement, some just plain confused.

Zeus listened to it all, having decided that the quickest way to calm them down was to rant and rave for a few minutes.

"_MATED?! TO THAT THING?!_"

"WE GAVE THEM A VACATION AND THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS!"

"OH DON'T LOOK AT ME! I WASN'T THE ONE WHO WANTED TO GIVE THEM THE STUPID TIME OFF IN THE FIRST PLACE! ATHENA WAS ALL 'EEEHHH THEY LOOK TIRED! GIVE'M A BREAK ARES! SO I DID!"

"DON'T EVEN GO THERE ARES! YOU WERE RUNNING THEM RAGID! WITH YOUR WARS AND CRIME AND--"

"LOVE IS **NOT **MY JURISTICTION OH 'WISE' ONE! TALK TO APHRODITE!"

"YEAH BECAUSE I'D SO **TOTALLY** HOOK UP THE GROUCHY BAT AND THE GRINCH-LOOKING THING! AS IF! I WAS TRYING TO PAIR HIM UP WITH THE PRINCESS!"

"UGH! IT'S LIKE WITHOUT CRIME THEY GO COMPLETELY BONKERS!"

"HE ALMOST DIED!"

_Whoever shouted that was going to get an lightning bolt shoved right UP their ass_, Zeus growled mentally, as the voices increased in volume. He'd already known that little fact, and there was a REASON he was keeping it to himself!

"DIED?! THE MARTIAN ALMOST KILLED HIM?!"

"APHRODITE YOU BREAK THEM UP RIGHT NOW!"

"FOR THE **LAST** TIME IT **WASNT** ME!"

"LOVE IS YOUR JURISTICTION! THEY'RE MATED! THEREFORE, **YOU DID IT**!"

"**EVERYONE SHUT THE HELL UP!!**" Hera screeched, causing all the lower gods to cover their ears in protest.

Silence, but it wouldn't last for long, not with the way the Gods were glaring at each other accusingly. Zeus stared at the chaos and wondered how in the _hell_ he was supposed to explain this. Everyone was going to start asking him for answers; answers that he didn't have.

They had decided to give the Justice Leaguers a break from the crime and war. They couldn't _stop _it altogether, doing so would put the balance in danger, but they could stop anything really major from happening.

For a little while anyway.

And they had decided to give them a break from having Gods meddling in their lives. That way both the Leaguers and the Gods themselves could relax.

A week had gone and passed.

And needless to say, THINGS had happened while they were away.

Lots and lots of things.

Such as the fact that Batman and J'onn were now MATED.

Batman was Bruce Wayne.

Bruce Wayne was human.

How in the _hell_ did he get mated to a _Martian_?!

The entire thing just screamed impossible at Zeus. And he was very close to admitting this to the others, when someone suddenly appeared in the middle of the room.

Make that three someones.

Upon seeing C'ridyall, H'ronmeer and L'Zoril everyone fell deadly quiet. Finally, Ares let out a rude snort. "So it's YOUR fault everything's gone to hell and back."

C'ridyall had the decency to blush, but H'ronmeer? He just rolled his eyes. That got him a thwak upside the head from L'Zoril, who shot him a look that clearly meant 'let me do the talking'. Clearing his throat, L'Zoril began to explain.

And as he opened his mouth, C'ridyall relaxed. If anyone could get them out of this mess, it was him.

"J'onn went into heat and molested Batman. They had sex. As a result of the sex, they became mates. The heat put too much strain on Batman's body, he almost died. We saved him. Now his senses have evolved and unless he gets a grip on it, he'll probably die. Again. It was all H'ronmeer's idea and/or fault, C'ridyall went along with it, they dragged me into it, and now I'm going back to the dream realm. Bye."

With that, he dissappeared, leaving C'ridyall and H'ronmeer gawking at him. How could he just throw them to the sharks like that?!

H'ronmeer looked at the other gods, who were giving them one HELL of a glare...and gave them a sheepish smile. "Uh...oops?"

Several of them took in a deep breath right then and there, but before another screaming match could start up, Hermes appeared, his normally wide and carefree eyes wild with some weird emotion...

"For the _last_ time Hermes," Athena exclaimed in an exasperated sort of tone, "you _can't_ race the Flash!"

The young god let a pout cross his features. "Why not?! I could pretend to me some sort of mortal or--" He shook his head. "Wait what am I saying? I don't care about that right now!"

Immediately that got their attention. When did Hermes _not_ care about racing The Flash?

And then the emotion showing in his eyes finally registered and it made them all uneasy.

Fear.

Hermes was _afraid_. But of what?

But then he spoke, solving the mystery. "He's back!"

Zeus felt himself grow cold. "You're certain?" But the question went unanswered; he knew Hermes enough to know that this was not one of his pranks. One didn't _joke_ about _His_ return. Turning towards the two Martian Gods, he snapped, "We'll continue this later."

They waisted no time teleporting away from there, happy to be out of the line of fire.

H'ronmeer growled when they reappeared outside. "I'm going to _kill _L'Zoril for doing that!"

C'ridyall was in agreement with him on that but...she couldn't help but wonder...

Who was back?

Why had they left in the first place?

And why was their return causing such commotion?

()

Cookies to anyone who can guess who's back. Hell I'll name my first born after ya!

I'm telling the truth, honest!

o.o And that's terrible.


	5. Ignorance is bliss

()

Clark opened his mouth to say something, only for Bruce to interrupt. "_Don't_."

He had quite an idea of what Clark was going to start lecturing him about and he really didn't deserve it. Not this time anyway.

The man-of-steel bristled. "Bruce, you practically caused him to wet his pants--"

"Not practically. Did."

Wonder Woman scooted away from the mysterious puddle. Which had appeared just seconds before Flash had disappeared. And was yellow. Ew.

Bruce let a satisfied smile hug his lips—but was wise enough to not turn it into a smirk. If that's how _Flash _felt about his smirk, he didn't even _want_ to think about how Wonder Woman felt.

Or Green Lantern.

Because if Wonder Woman used lubrication in some of her mental schemes, that was...kind of hott.

But if _Green Lantern _used...lub...lubi...

He shuddered. Damn Flash for putting mental pictures in his head.

Flash's girly scream had been correct. He _was_ going to die. Just as soon as Clark let him out of his eyesight for more than thirty seconds.

Oh. He was still talking.

Right. Pay attention to the lecture. He focused.

_Puddle._

The thought entered his head so quickly, that he jerked physically. What the? Puddle?

Someone's thoughts. Not his. Whose?

_So gross...puddle..._

Clark started waving his hands around. He tried to look interested. Or at least like he was paying attention.

_It's so...yellow..._

Why were they so concerned about the damn puddle?

_**Why** is it so yellow? Maybe he has an infection?_

Bruce nodded. It was indeed, a bit too yellow. Clark, of course, took this to mean he was agreeing with whatever it was he was saying.

_No...probably just lack of water...yeah...water..._

And the thought died out there. He tuned back into Clark's rant.

"And then my ma' said to me--"

That is where he tuned back _out_ of Clark's rant.

_It's staring at me..._

This thought was more...weaker? No...but...different. So it wasn't the same person.

_Stupid puddle._

Then again, maybe it was.

_Did it just blink? I think it did..._

Bruce snorted. Puddles don't blink. Clark's face started turning red. He'd probably just unintentionally insulted the way he was raised but...

_Puddle. Yellow yellow puddle. Staring back at meee..._

He had slightly more important things to worry about right now.

Like the puddle thoughter...personer...person.

Had to find out who was thinking about the puddle. Bruce glanced at the other leaguer's eyes...

Only to blanch slightly. (Clark's voice took on a slightly apologetic tone..) They were _all_ staring at the puddle. Not directly. Glancing out of the corner of their eyes, as if to look like they were paying attention to Clark...

When really they weren't.

_Someone should clean it up. Right._

The thought was more brisk. But he was giving up on finding out who it was. Judging from how they kept glancing at it, the thoughts were coming from each of them. Great.

_Seems kind of ...wrong... killing it though._

He let out a disgruntled sigh, which caused Clark's voice to raise in volume.

_After all, it did blink at me._

Wait. So maybe it _was_ just one person, and not--

_Blinked at Hawk Girl too._

Crap. False alarm.

Someone was touching him. Oh. Clark. Clark was poking him. Which meant he was getting to the peak in his rant. Right. He _really_ needed to focus right--

_I'm not cleaning it up. Let Flash do it. It's his puddle. _

Yes. He had to agree. However--

_Then again, it's **Flash**. Chances of him cleaning it up are slim. _

Just what he'd been about to say. Err...think... This voice was very--

_It'll start growing mold soon. Then eyes. And legs. Then it'll start randomly attacking us in the middle of the night. And we'll all die. That's how the Justice League will end. Due to Flash's puddle. _

Stupid. Very very stupid.

_Death by puddle. Doesn't sound nearly as dramatic as it should._

Sad thing? The last thought was his. Clark's rant ended, and to his amazement, Hawk Girl nodded and started saying, "Superman has a point, Batman."

Oh she was _not_.

"You can't just..."

No way in _hell _was she going to join in on the lecture party when she just spent the majority of it thinking about Flash's _puddle_.

"**Puddle. Yellow yellow puddle. Staring back at meee...**" He said in deadpan voice, mentally smirking as all of them started to pale several shades.

Clark blinked at him, then looked towards the other leaguers, who were slowly backing out of the room (making sure to stay clear of the puddle). "What?"

Bruce leaned back into the pillows of the hospital bed, his ears just now starting to ring. The machines were off, and during the entire thing he had focused his hearing on Clark's heart beat. He was getting better but...

It wasn't nearly enough. And if the other Leaguer's thoughts were coming into his head, he really had a lot of work ahead of him until he could even _think_ about going out as Batman. The idea of facing Joker and being able to hear all the loony things that went on in the clown's mind...

Well it wasn't a very pleasing one.

For now though...

"Do you want to know what they were thinking about while you were ranting?" Why not have a little revenge?

Clark stared at him, then back at the doorway, where the leaguers had stood not two seconds ago. Taking into consideration the idea of poking fun at them, and the fact that...

"Honestly? No."

"You sure?"

"...Positive."

Ignorance was bliss.

()


	6. Shouldn't hurt this much

A/N: I spent a while wondering on what time-line this story takes place in. And then I realized that I just...really didn't have an answer. So this is my own time-line. It takes place in the Justice League. Some things from the series happened, some things didn't. So...yeah. This is before Unlimited began. I hate Unlimited. It was just so...meh. Just...MEH.

()

"_So," Bruce bit out, as another wave of pain slammed into his body. "What's the plan?"_

_One of the blurs moved, and then J'onn was suddenly right next to him, laying down close to his body. "They are going to strengthen the bond."_

_His pain-filled mind did a double take. Strengthen the..._

_Wasn't that what caused the whole problem in the first place?_

_As if hearing his thoughts, which he probably did being both a Martian and a God and all, L'Zoril said, "The Heat has stopped effecting your body hours ago. But the **stress** it put on you has caused your body to shut down. As it is right now, you are but minutes from passing away."_

_Bruce stared at one of the blurs where he thought the Dream-God was and snorted. "I heard that inside-out crack. So excuse me if I'm a little **concerned**."_

_A hand brushed over his cheek softly, and he closed his eyes as a soft wave of...of **heaven** washed into him, briefly taking away all the pain. Well, if this was how he felt being inside out...maybe it wasn't so bad..._

_One of the blur's snickered at him and he **was** going to shoot the blur a dark look, but a thwak sounded out, as if someone had smacked said blur upside the head. _

_Then his earlier conversation with J'onn came back to him. 'Their lives expand, their powers grow... Mating is the up most form of what you call 'love'. It is stronger; it can help two lost mates find each other again, and if injured, the bond can even heal you...that is, when Martians mate.'_

_So apparently their bond wasn't strong enough to heal him as it was. _

_So it needed to be strengthened. _

"_Correct." Came the answering hum, and J'onn squeezed his hand slightly._

"_There's still time to back out now if you wish._

_But Bruce wasn't awake anymore; his eyes had started to grow heavy and he was **so **tired..._

"_Bruce! Bruce!"_

**()**

Bruce entered the hospital wing, covers and pillow in hand, sleepy eyes taking in the mercifully darkened room. Finally. Some where he could rest without his ears ringing, or his eyes pulsing. Oh yes. _Pulsing_. His body slouching from exhaustion, he walked over toward the bed he'd occupied not even an hour ago and slowly sat down on it, allowing his overly sensitive skin to get used to the roughness of the mattress. Once he was sure he could handle it, he laid down and made himself comfortable, trying hard not to think about _why_ he was being forced to sleep in the hospital wing.

After the whole puddle fiasco, he found himself to be exhausted and had retreated back to his quarters to sleep. But that was when he realized something.

Such as, the fact that his room was very close to the monitor room. And that the computers beeped and made little mechanical noises. Very loudly. All the time. After tossing and turning for a few minutes, and getting a headache, he quickly grew agitated and started towards the hospital wing again. It was far enough from everything else that he could relax, thankful that his senses wasn't on the same level as Kal's was—yet.

The way J'onn and the others were talking...they would be. Soon.

Bruce wasn't quite sure how he felt about that. Sure, he could see the tactical advantage it would give him in his line of work; both as Bruce Wayne and The Batman. But...it was very tiring. Sound, sight, touch, _smell_, they were all so intense now, and it was all very overwhelming. Couldn't do anything anymore without concentrating on not getting sick from all the new things he wasn't used to feeling.

It would get better over time, he knew that. But for now...

Sleep was damn near impossible.

Maybe Clark had a point. Perhaps things would be easier if he stayed at the manor. The only people around the manor were...

His eyes started to close.

Alfred...and...bats...and...and...

Tired. So tired. He'd talk to Clark about it tomorrow. Right now he needed sleep.

Sleep. Mmm...

_Maybe I should come back later..._

Slowly he pried his eyes open, a disgruntled sigh escaping him. So close. He'd been _so_ close.

Diana. Diana was hanging right outside the door. With her loud thinking and breathing and..._nervousness_ that he could literally feel oozing from her. And while he knew she would leave if he didn't acknowledge her presence...

She was _really_ feeling crappy about something. And it was beginning to make _him_ feel crappy. So, he reluctantly sat up. "Come in."

_So close..._

The sooner he found out what her problem was; the sooner he could fix it. And the sooner he fixed it, the sooner he'd be able to go back to sleep. It was all selfishness on his part. He didn't care at all. Not one bit.

"Hi..Bruce..." She sat down on one of the chairs by the bed, her hands running through her hair. While she gathered up the nerve to speak, Bruce took in her appearance, noting that she was wearing lipstick. And...

His nose twitched. Perfume.

Very strong perfume.

Why was she so dressed up?

_I...this was a bad idea...I should leave..._ The thought entered his head, causing the headache from earlier, which had been mercifully dying, to flare up for a split second, and he fought to strengthen his mental shields. It was difficult because he was dead tired and Diana was projecting VERY loudly...

So much so that the next thought broke through his mental shields as if they were paper.

_Bad..stupid idea...what was I thinking?_

His eye twitched. "Diana, whatever it is just _say_ it al—mpfff..." No longer twitching, his eye was now open. Wide open. Along with the other one.

Diana was kissing him.

Her lips were nice, moist, plump. She was a very attractive woman and they had some serious chemistry. He couldn't really feel anyone close by. Most likely they could...do _this_...without being interrupted.

And get away with it.

Though he was tempted, his conscious quickly tapped his shoulder and waved at him, keeping him frozen in place, until another tense moment passed, and he found himself able to pull away. Felt the confusion rolling from her and winced. This whole feeling thing...

Was quickly growing _old_ and fast. He missed the good old days where he could be an ass and not feel the effect his words had on people. Knowing was one thing. _Feeling_ was another.

"Diana..."

"Bruce...we..." Her eyes shifted to the quiet machines that were laying next to his bed, finding them less intimidating than the _stare_ he was giving her. It had all of Batman's personality powered behind it, and it made her feel like she'd done something really horrible. And she knew that she had just betrayed J'onn in a huge way...but... "We...what about..._us?_" And there had been an 'us'. Though they never really got around to making it official, there...there had still been this..._spark_ between them.

Memories. They had quite a few of them together, and it wasn't easy for her to just _forget_ about them. Even if Bruce was now...mated...

To J'onn.

The cold look softened slightly, enough to make her feel comfortable enough to look at his face. Not his eyes though. "Diana, you are..truly, one of the most beautiful women I have ever laid eyes on."

Her face flushed, her heart starting to flutter.

"Be that as it may," Bruce continued on, and the fluttering quickly started turning to sinking. "J'onn is my mate now."

And despite the past between them, he wasn't so much of a tool as to betray J'onn like that. Not when he had been lying in the hospital twelve hours ago; had been on the brink of death, his mind reeling with emotions that he hadn't felt for so long...

Not when he had remembered the choices he'd made. The choice to lean over and _smell_ J'onn. To lose control. And he had made another one. When the Martian Gods had stepped in with their offer, and he had taken it, and became J'onn's mate. Completely.

J'onn had been his choice.

And he was going to honor it.

One day, Diana knew, that she was going to find someone. Be it man, woman, she didn't really know nor care. But she did know one thing, as she gazed into those blue eyes...and saw the conviction lying in them...

That person wasn't going to be Bruce Wayne.

With a mental sigh, she slowly stood up and headed out of the room.

"Diana--"

Looked over her shoulder and saw the slight sag of his shoulders, telling her just how plain _tired_ he was, and gave a small smile. "We're okay, Bruce. I had a feeling how this would turn out when I started looking for you. But..." He was actually having to fight to stay awake. It wasn't that she was _boring_ him, she could tell it wasn't her. The entire day had been very straining on his body and...

After what he'd been through, he deserved to rest. "But I had to try," she whispered, watching those blue eyes of his close.

()

Aphrodite stood across from Bruce's bed, watching the human sleep.

She just didn't _get_ _it_.

Diana was a beautiful woman. Apparently one of the most beautiful women Bruce had ever laid his eyes on. But he still decided to remain faithful to that green thing? It didn't make any sense.

They weren't in love. Love was her jurisdiction. If they _were_ in love then she'd be able to feel it. Maybe that was her problem. Maybe that was why she couldn't accept this...

Mate thing that was between them.

Love was a beautiful thing. Everyone deserved to be a part of it. Sometimes they couldn't though; sometimes the past covered them up with so many scars, that it hurt too much to _love_, because to love was the most dangerous thing you could do. So instead they buried themselves in their anger, in their hatred until they were numb and they didn't have room to love anyone. And if there was no room, you couldn't notice the emptiness.

Which was probably why Batman was one of Ares' favorites. He constantly teetered on the fine line between sanity and _in_sanity, choosing to do things _his_ way, rather than go strictly by the book. Maybe that wasn't a smart thing to do, to try and balance on that very thin line. But any time someone brought it up, Ares would just say that it apparently **worked** for Batman, because he was still there.

And she couldn't argue with him. Yet at the same time, she couldn't help but wonder...

What about Bruce?

What about the man _behind_ the Bat?

Maybe Batman didn't feel the emptiness, but surely Bruce had too.

So she had steadily worked with him and Diana, determined to fill the emptiness. To make them work. And for a while, things had gone smoothly.

Until they'd decided to give them that stupid break.

And that _stupid_ 'God' H'ronimer or WHATEVER had decided to butt in. And what did he have to say for himself for ruining all her hard work?! 'Uh..._oops_?'

_Oops?! **OOPS?!**_

All her hard work DOWN.THE.DRAIN.

Where it would apparently _stay_, Aphrodite thought moodily, as she took in what had just happened. Bruce had been tempted, she could see it in his eyes. But he refused to stray from J'onn.

Even though they weren't in love.

The Goddess of Love and Beauty stood there sulking for another second or two, before allowing a small smile to shape her lips. Well, if she thought about it, it _was_ rather sweet.

He was willing to stay with J'onn out of loyalty.

She could do love, but loyalty was something that came from the heart. How many people did she manage to hook up, only to cry with aggravation as one person screwed it up, due to their inability to remain faithful?

Aphrodite shook her head, sighing. Alright, she could work with this. It wasn't _so_ bad after all, she supposed. They were friends, after all.

And friendship _was_ a form of love...

_'Aphrodite, if you are **done** with your meddling, would you mind coming back to Olympus now?!'_

She rolled her eyes before teleporting in a flash of pink light, stumbling ever so slightly as she realized that Bruce had been looking at her the entire time. And she hadn't even noticed. Walked into the main room, where the others were waiting for he. _That is __**so**__ creepy..._

Ares looked over at her and smirked.

She huffed. _Men._

()

J'onn stood there, towering over Bruce for what seemed like hours—and probably had been—his eyes gazing upon a certain area.

Bruce's lips.

More importantly, at the lipstick that was _smeared _on them.

He shouldn't feel this hurt. Or betrayed.

Diana and Bruce had history.

He and Bruce weren't even in love.

So if they weren't in love, then it shouldn't matter. Shouldn't matter at all that he'd just locked lips with the princess. That he evidently held no regard for their bond. Which was the _last_ bond of it's kind.

Thousands of years of civilization, of culture. And it didn't mean anything to Bruce. Nothing at all.

It shouldn't matter.

It shouldn't hurt like this.

But it did.

()

The Green Lantern looked down at his crossword puzzle, his eyes narrowed in concentration. Something which was hard to do, considering that Hawk Girl was sitting close by.

Lately they had taken to spending a lot of time with each other. John didn't really know what the attraction was, or why they started gravitating towards each other. Most of the time they barely said two words. Perhaps it was the aura she emitted. Her strong _sane_ presence. Hawk Girl didn't go around sleeping with Martians, setting Chocos on fire or nearly keeling over from having sex with said Martian.

No. She was the sane one in the group. Flash had always been the crazy one. Running around all those high speeds...that had to cause some serious brain damage. Wonder Woman, of course, is doomed to join them. She had gone from living in a lesbian Paradise Island to living in _Hell_. It would cause anyone to snap.Batman was a MAN dressed as a BAT running around chasing after clowns and psychotic penguins. (Though oddly enough there were theories that went around, saying that his name was BATMAN for a reason, and that it was a BAT dressed as a MAN...)

Superman and J'onn...they had been the sound ones. Oh yes.

Superman was the man of steel.

J'onn was the cold serious one.

But...now...J'onn was supposedly like mated to Batman...which was like marriage, but stronger. Marriage drove everyone insane. So...something _stronger_ than marriage...and being mated to _Batman_ of all people...at first, Green Lantern hadn't been that worried. J'onn was sane, right?

But he had _slept_ with Batman.

The only way anyone would sleep with _Batman _was if they were insane. Bruce Wayne wasn't that big of an accomplishment. If his reputation was anything to go by, he'd slept with pretty much everyone. But _Batman_...

The only way anyone could sleep with _Batman_, who was about as cuddly as a rattlesnake, was if they were _insane_.

So it had all been just an act, to fool the rest of them.

J'onn was insane. Batman was insane.

A perfect match.

And Superman...

He was constantly muttering under his breath about perverted racists...so Green Lantern figured it to only be a matter of time for him. But Hawk Girl. Hawk Girl was nice and pretty and strong and _sane_. She was his life saver. Because if it was just him, he'd have no hope left. Oh no. He'd be swallowed by the waves of insanity. But since it was him and HAWK GIRL, he was fine. Destined to be sane.

Because if anything tried to turn her crazy, she'd start swinging her mace around—just ask Flash. When he had seen her swing the mace, for a split second, he had felt an ounce of fear in his heart that maybe she was gone. Maybe they had gotten to her while he wasn't looking. But then she seemed to sense the danger and slowly backed out of the room. Ran. She ran. Oh yes. Clever woman.

As if sensing his thoughts, Hawk Girl let out a low laugh, one which would have caused his heart to pound just a tad faster, had he had such feelings for her. But he didn't. So his heart stayed beating at a normal pace. Didn't skip a beat or flutter. Not at all.

And he wasn't happy when she closed her eyes and started humming softly, a song which was beautiful and eerie at the same time, causing his body to slowly relax and unwind. Didn't feel content as he looked over and saw just how beautiful she looked right then and there, with her face smooth and worry free, her lips curled up ever so slightly...

_I could get used to this, _He mused.

()

I hope ya like the Lantern/Hawk Girl I slipped in there. -


	7. Leave it to me

**()**

"And He's yet to do anything?"

Hermes shook his head. "No. From what I can tell, He's just observing him."

They all pondered on that. It didn't make sense. He'd vanished millenniums ago. Why would he be back **now**?

What was he planning? _Was_ he planning anything? So far He'd done nothing but watch but they didn't really know a lot about Him. He'd only come around once a few years ago. To check up on things He said. But He hadn't stayed long.

Which was good.

Athena sighed, resting her head on the palm of her hand. "We should tell them of His return."

She was right.

But Zeus didn't really know if he should. Most likely the Justice Leaguer's wouldn't even know what to make of His return. One of them would probably be filled with awe and wonder, when they really shouldn't because His return didn't really promise anything good.

Not really a fair judgment, and the King of the Gods knew that. Just because He'd _vanished_...

Because He abandoned His _people_...

Didn't necessarily mean that He was out to do harm. However, there was this feeling in his gut that kept telling him otherwise, and judging by the anxious looks the others were sharing, he wasn't alone.

Athena was right. They should tell The Justice League.

"Not right now." Herra stated, sensing her husband's conflicting emotions. "Let us wait and see what He does. He may just be 'checking up on things' again. There's a good chance He'll simply leave after a few days like last time."

They looked over towards Zeus, not really agreeing with his judgment...

He nodded in agreement. "If He starts trouble...then we'll tell them."

...but knowing that they'd have to concede. Zeus word was law.

Didn't mean they had to like it though. And Athena certainly did _not_.

()

Alfred thought he knew Master Bruce rather very well. He'd raised the boy after all. He was included in on every one of the Master's decisions. Well, the major ones anyway. The ones that mattered. He was there through thick and thin.

Sometimes he had a feeling that he knew more of what was going on in Master Bruce's life than the Master himself did. He was always one step ahead of the Master, had to be, unless he wanted to be left behind. He'd learned long ago not to let anything shock him. And after all this time, very little did these days. He felt like he'd seen it all, the good and the bad.

So when Clark had called the mansion, telling him to shut down all appliances, lights and televisions, he'd complied, not the least bit surprised. Confused, maybe. But he figured all would be explained in due time.

And he figured right.

However, never in a million years, did he ever imagine _this_.

Master Bruce becoming...mated...to a Martian.

A Martian. Mated. Never, did Master Bruce mention any sort of romantic feelings towards the alien. He'd mentioned a few things about Diana, perhaps. But never J'onn. So the suddenly being mates thing...

Well you could have knocked him over with a feather.

And Bruce figured that if nothing else good came from this, other than the fact that he'd managed to _finally_ throw Alfred for a loop...that he'd be happy.

Even if the loop he threw Alfred for only lasted a few minutes. Still, he relished in those minutes like a little kid. Until Alfred got a hold of himself and nodded, saying softly, "Alright then. If you're in love then I suppose..."

Then it was Bruce's turn to be floored. "Love?"

The butler fell silent yet again. "You..._do_ love him, do you not Master Bruce?"

An uncomfortable silence followed, as Bruce shifted in his bed. He was the Batman. Batman fought people like the Joker, Killer Croc, Two Face. So why, _why_ was it so hard for him to face Alfred? _My one weakness,_ He thought wryly, before saying, "Ah...well..."

"What was your first date like?"

A flinch, as Bruce took in the slightly sharp tone. Surely Alfred didn't think he'd keep something like _this_ away from him, did he? Did he think that he and J'onn had like this huge romantic romance thing going on in private? No! "It happened rather..._suddenly_...Alfred."

"So you're telling me that you managed to become mated to J'onn without so much as a date? A kiss?"

Color flushed his cheeks. "Uh...well...we did more than kiss..."

Saw Alfred's eye twitch and had to fight the urge to hide under the covers. Trying to tell himself that he wasn't a kid anymore; that he could handle Alfred.

"So you had intercourse and then proceeded to become mates?"

A cough. "Actually the intercourse _led_ to the mating..." He could handle Alfred. He could!

"Are you a _teenager _Master Bruce!?"

The urge to take cover was choking him with it's intensity. Alfred was yelling at him. Bruce winced, feeling like he'd just murdered someone. Worse. He felt like he'd just disappointed his butler. Who's opinion really mattered. No matter what Bruce tried to tell himself.

"It wasn't my fault!" Aware that he was almost whining but couldn't help it. Alfred made him feel like a kid again with that reprimanding stare of his. "There was this smell and the heat and then...we woke up and they wouldn't stop _staring _and then J'onn LEFT because I didn't use the matches. And Flash and Green Lantern wouldn't stop trying to talk about it so now I owe Lantern seventy grand. And then Clark discovered he was a perverted racist and J'onn was on the _moon _so I had to burn the chocos and then J'onn threatened me and Diana wouldn't set me on fire! So then J'onn comes in and tells me we're mated and then I almost die and those blurs tell me they're strengthening the bond and now my senses are going haywire and Flash has thoughts about me and lubrication--LUBRICATION-- and Diana kissed me and I think J'onn knows because he's been avoiding me lately and there was this _woman_ hanging over my bed! MY BED!"

He fell backwards onto his mattress, feeling utterly spent. But he'd said his part. So now Alfred couldn't be mad at him.

The butler looked down at Master Bruce, closing his eyes as he absorbed everything that been said at really high speeds. Until it all sank it. "You promised Green Lantern seventy thousand dollars if he let the subject drop?" A sigh. Sometimes the Master acted just _like_ a spoiled child. "Never mind that part." He tried to soften his voice, aware that Bruce was more sensitive than normal. "Master Bruce, love is not something you simply jump into. It takes time. Effort. You two haven't even been on a _date_. Yet you're already mated?"

Bruce closed his eyes, groaning. "I really screwed up, didn't I Alfred?"

The butler gave him a soothing pat, pulling his hand away when he flinched. Sensitive, right. "Nothing that can't be fixed, Master Bruce. Just leave it to me."

()

If you guess correctly now, about who's back...it doesn't count. Cause you didn't get it on the first try. But I'll still think yer uber smarts!


	8. Losing control

A/N: Maybe this'll shed some light on who's back. Buuuut I doubt it.

()

There was something _wrong_.

It was a fuzzy sort of feeling in the back of Clark's mind, as he hurried and changed into Superman, racing off to save the city from another one of Luthor's mad schemes.

The feeling had been following him around for the past few days. He'd had enough telepaths inside his head to know when he felt his mental shields being breached and knew enough to realize that someone was reading his mind. Except this there was something _off_ about all of it.

Usually when there was an intruder upon his thoughts, his skin would start to crawl; everything shouting at him that someone was in where they shouldn't be, poking through stuff. That it was unnatural and dangerous and he needed to kick them out—and fast.

However, this someone was different.

Instead of feeling contaminated, he instead felt..._whole_. Safe. Like there was a guardian watching over him, offering his hand should Kal ever need it. It was the first time he'd ever felt something like it and so he was reluctant to say anything about it. If the person had meant harm—surely they would have done it by now, right?

Besides, the only one who could help him was J'onn and he wasn't really up to asking the Martian for help.

He arrived at the scene and only had a second to take in the situation before he was being hurled into a building by one HUGE robotic arm, and got to his feet, hardly feeling it at all. Started towards Luthor, his mind drifting away from his personal problems, and focusing on the fight.

_Don't hit the robot with all your strength. Luthor's still in there. Don't duck, if you do he'll hit Hawk Girl. Move—**move** out of the way this time. Don't look back, allow him to hit you from behind, get his mind off of what Wonder Woman's doing._

It was exhausting, constantly having to watch what he did and exactly how he did it, in order to make sure that he didn't hurt anyone. Calculating on what to do next, as Luthor's main target was him, and if he focused on _him_ then no one else would have to get hurt.

_You hit too hard that time. Lessen up a fraction next pun--_

_**Too hard? You didn't hit hard enough.**_

The presence that had been in his mind for the past week, finally spoke up, and Kal felt something _shift_ in his mind. Gone was the safe feeling he'd had before; now he felt terrified, as he felt them move around things.

Things that should never EVER be moved.

_Stop!_ His blow this time was harder than usual, enough to send the villain flying several feet back. It crashed into a building and Green Lantern and J'onn had to focus on making sure everyone was able to get out of the apartment complex alive, as the structure started to cave in.

_I can't fight full strength against him! I could kill Luthor if I do that!_

_**So? Of all the things he's done to you, I think he deserves a little bit of discipline. He needs to know his place.**_

The voice in his head was wrong-_wrong_. Luthor was evil, yes, but it wasn't _his_ place to judge the crimes the man had committed. That was what the legal system was for. And he wasn't going to become a Justice Lord. _No. _

It was against his very being to listen to what this person was suggesting. But they kept shifting things around, pushing things there and pulling things here, causing his mind to spin around in a wild circle, until he wasn't sure what to believe anymore.

Heat beams shot out of his eyes and he only _just _managed to avoid hitting Luthor by mere inches. Allowed himself to be thrown into the ground, shocked as a violent wave of _rage_ washed over him. Was tempted to stand back up, but forced himself to lie still.

_OUT! GET OUT! OUT OUT OUT OUT OUT OUT OUT!_

_**I don't think so. You need my help, Kal-El. **_

Tried to employ the mental tricks J'onn had taught him a while back, and was helpless when the person batted away his efforts as if they didn't even exist.

_Too strong. Too strong. _

The robot's foot stomped down on him and Superman let out a low animalistic growl. He was trying to _save_ Luthor and the stupid man just kept EGGING him on! Never learned anything from all the times Superman put him in jail, always seeming to come out on top, no matter what he did. What was the _point_ of doing things the _right_ way? So what if he happened to _break_ a few ribs or puncture a lung?

Luthor obviously wanted him to snap! So why was he holding back?!

The thoughts weren't his, not completely. The person in his mind was twisting things around, warping reality. He was holding on, but just barely.

And had been determined to hang on, trying to find a way to communicate with J'onn, but either J'onn wasn't listening or the voice was stopping his efforts.

He felt close to crying, because he knew there was only one last thing to push, one thing left to shatter, before things would get really bad, really fast.

And as if on cue, the voice came across the last barrier in his mind, the one that had been built up with years of careful consideration, the one that told him when to pull back, that enough was enough and he was close to going too far—to crossing _that_ line.

And with one final shove, it disintegrated into pieces.

()

Flash swallowed tightly, as he stared down at the monitors, watching with wide eyes as Superman actually _growled_ and started to attack Luthor. Everything was such a mess; J'onn and Green Lantern were still evacuating people from the building Lex had slammed into, trying to go as quickly as possible, not only because it was ready to collapse at any second, but because Clark was having to be restrained by Wonder Woman and Hawk Girl--

Who were both failing. Miserably.

Winced as he saw Superman punch Wonder Woman in the head, hard enough to send her flying into a parked car. She didn't get back up.

Wrong, _wrong_. This was all so horribly screwed up, watching Clark break Hawk Girl's leg—hard enough for the bone to pierce through the skin, before heading towards Luthor, who seemed to have developed a lick of common sense and was reaching to what Flash thought was the stash of Kryptonite he'd kept hidden, and felt guilty at the rush of relief that passed through him.

Hopefully the Kryptonite would be enough to snap Clark out of _whatever_ it was he was in.

Lex wasn't fast enough though. A sharp blow was delivered to his stomach and Flash could hear the sickening _crunch_ of ribs breaking. Whatever was happening to Clark—it had to end, fast, before he ended up killing the guy. But what was he supposed to do? His body was frozen in place, his mind racing, because there was nothing coming to mind. He was—he was just _Flash, _how was he supposed to take out Superman?!

It seemed like he wasn't the only one who was wondering the same thing, as J'onn and Green Lantern started to pull him off of Luthor, who was starting to cough blood.

"_**GET OFF OF ME!**"_ Superman roared, and Flash swallowed yet again. They couldn't hold him off forever, not when he was like _this_, refusing to hold back his powers, using them to their fullest potential. He was _unstoppable. _

_What about Luthor's stash of Kryptonite? _Scanned the ground for it, only to come up empty. He had no idea what the container looked like, much less where Kal had _thrown _it after yanking it away from the villain.

Okay, so he'd have to think of a new plan.

_Batman. Batman has Kryptonite. _

He could teleport down to Bruce's place, get the Krptonite, teleport to where Superman was--

And then what? Pull it out? Like he'd be fast enough! There was a very _very_ fine line between who was faster, Flash or Superman and right now, without holding back at all, the sun gleaming down from it's high position in the sky...Flash didn't stand a chance.

Most likely he'd get it yanked from him and he'd have two seconds to say his prayers before joining Luthor in the land of broken ribs.

Green eyes shot wide open as he saw J'onn fall to the ground while clawing at his head, obviously failing in his attempt to try and reach out to Clark with his mind. A scream sounded out from the Martian's throat and Flash gulped. _They're dying out there! Have to do **something**!_ Another scream.

Flash started typing in commands. "Teleport down and something—do something. Something. I'll--"

"Flash."

Jerked up at the sound of his name and liked to have fainted with relief as he saw Batman standing there, panting heavily and knees trembling. He looked _terrible_ and it was evident that all his senses were screeching at him, but the speedster didn't object when the Bat ordered him to teleport him to Superman. It didn't make a lot of sense logically. Wonder Woman, Hawk Girl, J'onn had all failed in their attempts to subdue the Kryptonian. And Green Lantern was quickly joining them.

If _they_ couldn't stop him, the ones who had the super strength and powerful abilities, how was _Batman_ supposed to be able to stop him?

_Because he's...Batman. _His mind stated, as he teleported the man down to the scene below. _Batman can do anything._

And as he watched the Dark Knight start towards Clark, who's hand was wrapped tightly around Lantern's throat, Flash tightened his hold on the edges of the computer, determined to hold onto that belief.

_He'll fix it. He always fixes it._

()

I hope it wasn't too crappy. Writing action isn't really my forte. I'm more of a humor/drama/romance type person. But I had this scene in my head and... :hides: don' hurt meh!


	9. More important

()

Colors swirled around, his world spinning, tilting back and forth, sounds screeching at him. So loudly he couldn't even make out which sounds were coming from where. Clark was standing several feet away, still clutching Lantern's throat. He took a step forward towards them, and the world faded a little bit around the edges, threatening to go completely black.

Everything hurt. His body felt like it weighed three thousand pounds, and like it was getting heavier with every step he took. His body was numb, yet at the same time it was feeling too much.

People were screaming, cameras were going off left and right, reporters trying to make sense of what was going on. Was it mind control? Or did the boyscout simply snap? Their thoughts were loud, buzzing around in his head like angry bees, coming close to over whelming him as he took another step forward. It hurt. His skin was tingling like a thousand needles were being shoved into it, increasing in it's intensity as the seconds passed and he steadily inched forward.

The world started to get a grayish tint to it and Batman reached out, focusing on Clark's heart, which was beating so fast. Felt the waves of emotion pouring off the alien and staggered as a surge of anger hit him hard, almost causing him to double over in pain. And was hit by another yet again, but this one of a different emotion. One which made him straighten up and force the world to gain it's color again.

Fear.

Clark was afraid.

He was _scared_.

Scared of crossing that line; the one thing that separated _him_ from _them_ and it was quickly approaching, as Lantern's body struggled for air. But Clark couldn't _drop_ him. There was something keeping his hand tight, something keeping his mind clouded with rage. He was going to kill soon.

And Clark was scared _shitless_.

So Batman took another step forward, gritting his teeth as the world dipped yet again and his vision started to swim, fighting to hold on to consciousness, because if he succumbed to it, then all would be lost. His body was going to do what he told it to. It was going to take another step. And it was going to take another one. And another one after that _because he told it to_.

He battled people like Joker, Penguin, Two Face and Riddler. He'd traveled for years around the world, seeking to learn from the best of the best and he _had_. Pushing his body past it's limits until said limits had broken. Until his body couldn't move and it hurt to even think about breathing. He was **The Goddamn Batman** and he'd be damned if he was going to let Clark murder. Not when he was _so_ close, just a few steps more until he was _there_, right in front of --

"Superman."

Locked eyes with Kal and waited for him to release Lantern, flinching when those hands instead tightened on him, fingers digging into his arms painfully in a desperate attempt to reach out, eyes begging him to make it stop. To make _him _stop. The world turned pitch black, but he still held on, tapping into the Kryptonian's mind with his own.

Pure chaos and in the center of it all, there was a being.

_He had the same dark hair and blue eyes that Superman did, but his face didn't hold the same warmth; eyes cold and a disgusted look on his face, as he realized that Batman was standing before him. _

"_You're not as strong as the Martian."_

"_No, I'm not._" _Forced his legs to stop their trembling. He wasn't going to fail. He wasn't. "But I **will **make you leave."_

_The being laughed and Batman felt something slam into him that was supposed to send him flying out of Clark's mind. It caused a pain to erupt in his entire body and almost worked. _

_Except..._

_Superman, Clark, was counting on him._

_And he would not fail. _

_So he shoved back against the being, who lunged forward and Batman felt himself being slammed into the ground in both the outside world **and** in Clark's mind; a very strange and painful experience. "**How dare you interfere you human!?**" Came the snarl. "**I am helping Kal-El--**"_

_It was Bruce's turn to laugh. "Helping?! You're destroying him!"_

_The being struck him across the face, causing the skin to break and beads of blood to leak out. "**What do YOU know of Kal-El?! NOTHING! YOU KNOW NOTHING OF--**"_

"_Kal-El.Doesn't.Kill." He grounded out through the pain of what felt like a fractured, if not broken, jaw. "Superman.Doesn't.Kill. And right now, that is what you're trying to make him do." _

_Silence, as the being stared down at him with those cruel eyes of his. Until he started to fade away and Batman was left laying alone. The chaos was still there, but was dying down now that the main source was apparently gone, slowly going back to their proper places. Carefully, he extracted himself from Clark's mind._

Saw the crowd of people that had started to gather around and knew that he wouldn't be able to fade into unconsciousness, no matter how much his body hurt or how tired he felt. "Flash...teleport. Now."

And the speedster was happy to comply.

()

The second they were all back up to the tower, Batman began to do damage control, snapping into action as he helped Flash move the others to the hospital wing. They'd done xrays and had been relieved to see that Wonder Woman hadn't had a skull fracture. Just a concussion, along with a few cracked ribs, cuts and bruises. Nothing that wouldn't heal with time. Green Lantern and J'onn were a little banged up, but fine otherwise. Lantern had passed out due to lack of oxygen and J'onn had simply passed out from the pain of that strange thing's attack. Superman was pretty much unharmed. Physically at least. Batman didn't even want to _think_ about how he'd react upon waking up.

Hawk Girl was the one that gave them the most trouble. Her leg was broken in three different places, the bone sticking out at a sickening angle that had Flash turning green and Batman swearing. It had taken _hours_ and by the time they were done, he was ready to drop. His world had thankfully stopped spinning, but was still tinged a dark gray, telling him that he was _very_ close to fainting, and it was only by pure willpower that he was able to fight it off. His back was _sore_ from where he'd been slammed into the hard concrete, his jaw was throbbing and felt on the verge of exploding every time he moved it, and his ears were ringing so loudly that he now had a huge migraine.

It was _so_ tempting to say to hell with it all and pass out. But he _couldn't_. There was still the cover story he had to come up with. He'd seen the reporters and was pretty sure thousands—if not millions—of people were wondering why Superman had snapped and nearly _killed_ both Luthor and his teammates, something which was supposed to go against everything he stood for. And if the people didn't get the answers they wanted soon then they were liable to start losing faith in Superman.

And once _that _happened...

Batman let out an exhausted sigh, running the situation through his mind. Flash walked, _actually walked_, up next to him, plopping down into the chair with a tired thud. "So what's our story?"

Normally he would have scoffed and stated that he'd handle it himself but right now that just seemed to take too much effort. He'd be a dick tomorrow. Or next week. Depending on when he woke up when he was _finally _able to close his eyes...and _sleep..._

The gray-tinted world dimmed even more and he gritted his teeth together, the pain jarring him out of it.

_Concentrating on sleep--bad idea._

They brainstormed for a cover story, Batman filling in Flash on what had happened while in Clark's mind. After ruling out the first six covers due to the glaring flaws they held, they finally settled on one that they were happy with and began dialing the number to the Daily Planet. The phone interview lasted about two hours, and was conducted by one lovely Lois Lane, who had spent thirty of it asking 'How's Superman? Is he going to be okay?' 'Is he conscious?' 'How badly is he hurt?', to which they had replied 'He's fine, Ms. Lane' over and over again until Flash started banging his head against the table before snapping, 'NEXT QUESTION LADY!'.

Batman would have smirked had his skin not felt like it was on fire.

But since it _did_, he'd simply have to add that do the things to do next month when he woke up. Along with buying Flash a present for getting Lane to ask something else. He deserved an _award_ for that. The phone interview ended and the two Superheroes slowly walked back to the hospital wing to check up on the other Leaguers. Hawk Girl needed another shot of morphine and Green Lantern had ripped open some of his stitches.

They took care of that and then started on the incredibly long trek back towards the monitor room, shoulders hunched over as if they were zombies. Had Flash been able to think anything other than _so...tired...sleep...tired..._ he would have made a joke. But he wasn't. However he couldn't add that to the list like Batman could, because by the time ten years rolled around the moment would have _been_ passed.

So he tried to say it now. Only when it came out it sounded something like "Zom' joke. Funny. Laugh.", which only got him a grunt from Batman. Meh. He'd try again after twenty years. Maybe when they woke up Batman would have a sense of humor. Unlikely but still, possible. They entered the monitor room and slouched down into their chairs. It was kind of pointless to keep watch, seeing how they were the only ones conscious right now, and if anyone were to attack the planet or start up a war, the most Batman would be able to was kick them in the shin. Maybe chuck a batarang at their head. But it'd probably miss. He could glare at them if he absolutely _had _to, but glaring meant moving his eyes, which would hurt. So he'd have to hold back on that. And the most Flash would be able to do was tell another crude zombie joke. Which wouldn't even make them laugh. A total waste. If they wanted to _wait_ fifty years, well then maybe that'd be a different story...

But...it was the principal of the matter. They just couldn't _let _Earth go unwatched. That wasn't what being a hero was about. Had to keep an eye on the planet. Their pride wouldn't let them do otherwise.

Not to mention that they had to be there, to check up on the others, in case something went wrong. Superman was liable to wake up soon and when that happened they were going to have to be there to keep him from running off. They had to watch and see if the swelling in Wonder Woman's brain went down. Hawk Girl's heart needed to be monitored in case it slowed too much due to the morphine in her system, and if Lantern ripped open his stitches once, then he'd probably do it again. And J'onn...

Well he tried not to think too hard about J'onn. Because when he _did _think of the Martian, he couldn't help but remember watching the news in the manor, seeing how he'd fallen and _screamed_. Because of that _being_. It was enough to make his blood boil, a very painful occurrence as everything was still hurting. Yet at the same time he couldn't help it. J'onn was hurting. His _mate _was hurting, and while they weren't in love, there was still a strange flare of emotion and a faint chant of _how dare he _echoing in the shadows of his mind.

Spotted movement on the screen and realized that J'onn was turning over in a feverish manner, still very much in pain from that _thing_. He didn't know how he could help though. If he attempted to enter J'onn's mind with him being as tired and inexperienced as he was now...

But sitting this far away, being able to see him but not do anything to help...was killing him.

Glanced out of his eye towards Flash and noticed that the speedster wasn't even watching the other monitors, not even bothering to be discrete. A few minutes passed and J'onn let out a whimper, causing Batman's fingers to itch with the need to do _something _...

_...and if inured, the bond can even **heal **you..._

Slowly, Batman got to his feet and left the room, not able to stay away any longer. Not with J'onn being in so much pain.

Heard footsteps following him and wasn't surprised at all. A part of him knew that he should order Flash to go back and keep an eye on Earth, but he said nothing. And decided not to add that to the list of things to do once he woke up a thousand years from now.

Because sometimes...

Walked into the hospital wing and sat in the chair next to J'onn's bed, grabbing the Martian's hand and giving it a slight squeeze. His mate's tossing died down, and Batman was relieved to see that his world was starting to gain color again, and that his migraine was fading to a headache, shocked at how _right _it felt to be by his side. Wouldn't complain though. Too tired to worry about what had happened in the past, or what might happen in the future. He only had enough energy to focus on the present right now.

They were only going to stay for a little bit though. Just to get this out of their system. To make _sure _that they were going to be okay.

Flash took a seat next to Superman, who was making choking sounds in his sleep, tears leaking out the corner of his eyelids. No doubt the man of steel was reliving his actions. He opened his mouth and even though the speedster was dead tired, started talking, reminding Clark about all the good things he'd done. The people he'd saved, the lives that he'd touched. And reminded him that even though he _had _hurt his teammates; had nearly killed that he _didn't_. And that was what mattered.

And as the Kryptonian's pain filled look eased up, Batman silently told his pride and principals that they could go to hell. And there they say, where they belonged, keeping guard over their teammates and not feeling the least bit guilty.

Because sometimes...

There were things more important then being a hero.

()

Review peoples! I apologize if this chapter is a bit...mehish...I'm kind of tired myself when I wrote this, probably why I wrote Flash and Batman as being so tired themselves...

o.o So I might have missed a bit during the whole um...editing...proofreading...process. Meh. Whatever. So long as yall like it, I'm good. - Oh and do any of yall know who it is? Anyone?


	10. Safe

()

Hades, God of the Underworld, was very often unaware of what went on up above his head. As it was now, he had no REAL idea of what was happening with those mortals in that little league. There were a few rumors that were going around; something about one of the humans getting mated. He didn't really understand why it would cause such a rise in the others, nor did he really care. So long as the balance between life and death wasn't in any danger, it didn't really concern him.

So he was quite content to stay out of _whatever _it was. He never really was one for drama, and if he _did _know he'd probably start hyperventilating just like the others had and well he REALLY didn't care for that. Therefor, he wasn't going to interfere. Nope. He was going to stay in the Underworld, with his lovely queen and maybe once all the madness died down he'd pop up there and ask what he'd miss.

Hades had been determined. It wasn't any of his business. Drama bad.

Until he'd felt Wonder Woman's soul appear in the underworld. And then disappear. But again, it hadn't made him waver in his oath. After all, she was in that League and they brushed with death on numerous occasions. Wasn't the first time this had happened. Certainly wouldn't be last. Of course, as soon as he'd thought those things, her soul had appeared yet again.

And had stayed for a frightening amount of time, before thankfully fading out.

Then Green Lantern's soul had shown up.

_His _had stayed for even longer.

Almost permanently.

Followed by Batman's soul, which had flickered annoyingly for what seemed like _hours _before FINALLY leaving.

None had appeared afterwards. He wasn't going to interfere. He wasn't going to cave in to his curiosity and pop up like last time. No. This time he was going to remain blissfully unaware of what was going on. Let the others take care of it.

Except..

There was this part of him, the part that came with being a god, that kept nagging at him; saying over and over again that something was _wrong _and it needed to be fixed. And as much as it might annoy him sometimes, he couldn't ignore it. To ignore the feeling...the _bond _he had with Earth and it's people...it hurt too much. He couldn't shut it off; he _wouldn't. _Because he'd seen what doing that did to a god. And he was _not _going to follow in that person's footsteps.

With that thought, he teleported to Mount Olympus.

()

The last thing Green Lantern was aware of, before being thrown to the ground, was Batman approaching him. He hadn't been able to really _see _the man, but one didn't need to see in order to be aware of the Bat's presence. It was a type of aura he gave off; part of his creepy darkness image thing he had going on. But never in his entire life, had he ever been so happy before to see Bats. Because if anyone could snap Superman out of it, it had to be him.

And, if the softness of the mattress he was lying on, or the beeping of the machines were anything to go by, the Batman had succeeded. His more cynical side said that just because he was in a hospital didn't really _mean_ that everything turned out okay. Cautiously, he opened his eyes and breathed a sigh of relief as he saw everyone was in the hospital wing. Yes, most of them were in beds like he was; but everyone _looked _to be alive.

His eyes landed on Shayera, more importantly on the cast that was on her leg.

"You're awake." Blinking, he turned away from Hawk Girl and saw Batman, who was sitting next to J'onn. Well, now that Lantern looked, it was more like slouching than sitting. He looked...like shit.

"Thanks."

Refusing to be embarrassed for thinking the obvious, he instead asked, "How's Shayera?"

"Fine. Leg's broken in three places. Had to use pins to keep the bone set. The morphine's keeping the pain at bay for now."

Lantern nodded at that, turning his gaze away from the Bat and towards Superman. The Kryptonian didn't have a mark on him, and for once he wished that he'd suffered from physical wounds as well. It just didn't seem _fair _sometimes...

Sighing, he took stock of his body, noting the neat line of stitches on his arm. His throat was also _very _tender from where he'd been held like a rag doll. Recalled the utter _rage _that had been flowing off the alien and fought back a shudder. _What happened? _If anyone would know...

Batman would. But before he asked that vital question...he realized something.

He, Hawk Girl, Wonder Woman, Superman and J'onn were all in beds. Batman was sitting by J'onn, holding his hand and looking like _shit_. Flash was sitting next to Superman and was staring off at a blank spot in the wall; having yet to notice that GL was awake.

So...who...?

"Who's keeping watch?"

That got him a blank stare from both heroes, and Lantern was puzzled when Flash didn't shriek and race forward like he usually would have. Come to think of it...he looked like shit too. How long had they been sitting there?

"We are."

"No, in the monitor room."

The blank looks didn't change any. "No one."

Took in their slouched postures, pasty skin and zoned out features. Stared at them for a few minutes, before nodding, and closed his eyes. "Okay."

_No one._

_Heh. _

He shouldn't feel that pleased about it. Them leaving Earth unprotected should have riled him up, infuriated him even. _Everything _about the situation should have infuriated him. Superman going ballistic, his injuries, _Hawk Girl's _injuries...

There was part of him that was tempted to start demanding answers. Batman had to have _some _sort of idea what was going on and he was itching to be filled in but...

As his mind started to drift off towards unconsciousness...another part couldn't help but feel slightly touched at their actions. It was incredibly mushy and sentimental, probably due to whatever drugs they had him on right now. They were teammates and had saved each other's asses on more than one occasion. That right there said that they had to care just a _little _about what happened to him.

But...still. It was nice having proof.

_Questions can wait, _He decided before letting himself fade into the dream world.

()

There was a strange tingling sensation. It started from his head and worked it's way down to his toes. Lingered a bit on his jaw, and then on his ribs. It wasn't painful, but it _was _annoying; enough so for him to snap out of his half-asleep state. Which was when he realized that Clark was awake.

And x-raying him.

"Stop that." He snapped, wincing when his jaw throbbed, letting him know that while it may have healed up a bit due to contact with J'onn it still wasn't quite one hundred percent yet. The Kryptonian then turned his sights to the others and began checking on them. He'd stared for the longest time at Hawk Girl and Wonder Woman, and Batman growled as he felt the guilt coming from him. Thankfully, Flash had jerked awake once Clark had started moving, and was rambling on about trivial things, trying to get the alien to relax in his own weird way.

But there was something _off _about his demeanor. Something which caused him to ask, "How'd he get in, Superman?"

Normally there was always a point where the memory went blank. Usually when they touching something or someone unusual, and if they found out what or who, then maybe they could get to the bottom of this and find out just what was going on. Silence for a few seconds, then Superman cleared his throat. "I...don't know." Batman nodded, and his mind was going through a few possibilities, when he continued, "He'd been there for a few days and..."

Wait, _what?! _"You mean to tell me." He stated, his voice hard. "that you've known about that _thing _being inside you for _days _and you didn't.TELL.ANYONE.ABOUT.IT?"

"I-I didn't think He would _do _anything. He...He felt..._safe_." Superman finished lamely, knowing that his excuse sounded pitiful to the Dark Knight but he couldn't _explain_ the connect he'd felt...

The hallow laugh coming from the Bat's throat made his heart sink. "Safe. Wonderful. Just fan _fucking _tastic Superman!"

Watched him storm out of the room and Clark bit his lip, hesitating before following after him. It wasn't really a wise choice; whenever Batman was angry the smart choice of action would be to leave the country—if not the planet. But he felt like he had to at least try and explain his actions better. Make him try and see... "B..."

Entered the monitor room behind him and sighed as he saw Batman start punching in commands. "Where are you going?"

"Home! And if you follow me I swear to fucking GOD I'll use the kryptonite."

_He really means it..._Superman swallowed, taking in his friend's anger. He'd pissed him off before but never like _this. _And he decided that if he lived through this experience he never would again. Some things were just too terrible to go through twice. "Batman, if you'd just let me explain--"

"Explain?!" The vigilante whipped around, his voice dripping with acid, causing Superman to unconsciously take a few steps back to distance himself from the utter _rage _that was flowing from the man. "You knew. You KNEW there was someone FOREIGN inside your mind and you told NO ONE about it. Because it felt _safe_. Did it feel SAFE when it was making you demolish apartment complexes? Did it feel SAFE when you were punching Diana into a car?! **DID IT STILL FEEL SAFE WHEN IT ATTACKED J'ONN?! WHAT ABOUT GREEN LANTERN?! They almost DIED due to YOUR stupidity!**" His voice, which had risen almost painfully in volume, suddenly died down, the Bat clutching his head.

The world was starting to spin again, tilting madly and changing colors. Knew by the way his mind was pulsing that his senses were about to explode again. He'd already pushed his body way too far today and this time he was going to pass out. Looked over at Superman, who was giving him this kicked puppy look, pleading with those eyes of his to _understand_. And a part of him knew that there had to be more to the story...but...

_Too much. _It was too fucking _much_.

"I can't deal with this right now!" Turning away, he punched in the last of the commands and was teleported down to the cave, it's dark atmosphere cool and refreshing. The second his feet hit the ground he was out like a lamp, oblivious to the startled voices around him.

()

- How'd ya liiiiike it? Sorry if it's a bit...meh...kinda had a bit of writer's block...mmm..


	11. Thoughts of a God

We've been around for so long...

I don't think any of us remembers really how we came to be. So many different versions, any one of them could be true. We don't remember who brought us here, and we don't know how long this is all going to last. It could be forever, it could be until tomorrow. That's one thing that we and mortals have in common, I guess.

But no matter how often things change, no matter how much time passes...one thing always remains the same.

Our destiny.

Our _purpose_.

It's the one thing we know. The only thing we have. Our purpose is to watch over this place, Earth, and it's people. Some may think we don't care, but we do. Sometimes we care so much that it hurts. We can't save everyone, we can't cure disease or stop world hunger. To do so would upset the balance, and it's on such a delicate scale as it is...

Everything. We feel everything. Their hopes and dreams, triumphs and failures.

Some have twisted beyond control, becoming black and tainted. We weep for those children we have lost to the madness. The ones who hurt so much but for some reason can't die just yet. I can't speak for the others, since I don't know if they have exactly what I do but...

There is this _bond _between me and them.

It's a string that wraps around my very soul and connects me to theirs. It's how I can tell when some thing's wrong, or when someone desperately needs my help. It completes me. So much so that when Zeus strips us of our powers, to punish us for something we've done wrong...

The gaping hole that's there once I'm mortal...

Makes me never repeat what I've done again.

It's not easy, doing what we do. Sometimes it hurts so much, watching them hurt. I just want to hold them all, caress their souls and hide them from all that troubles them. Watching them destroy themselves, watching them kill. The sickness and _filth _of it all.

But there's also a bright side.

Watching the smiles. Feeling a child take it's first breath in this world. Witnessing their first love. Their first _accomplishment_. The joy they show in the smallest things like _affection. _The way they laugh. Each laugh is different, effects them differently. I truly love each and every one of them.

That is why I cannot stand _Him_.

That is why I _hate _what _He _did.

I don't understand. I don't _want_ to understand. He turned his back on his people. An entire planet. It died due to him leaving, I just know it. A planet needs someone to give life to it. Someone to nurture it. That was his _destiny_. His purpose. And he rejected it. Said he didn't want it that he never asked for it. Said he had his own dreams and hopes and that Mortals didn't concern him. He _left_. And without him it became unstable. Blew up into billions of little pieces.

_Oh, Rao..._

I hate it when Kal says his name. Hate it hate it hate it.

Some times I hate him so much that I want to scream. When he's not around, I barely give him a second thought. But when he _visits_...

I want to kill.

He follows Kal around like a lost puppy. It infuriates him, I know it does. That despite all efforts, the bond is still there. Still nagging him. He doesn't feel complete unless he's near his Child. He _wants _to feel complete, but he doesn't want the responsibility.

Thinks he's helping Kal with his little visits; that Kal needs him just as much as he needs Kal.

He's wrong though.

Kal doesn't know anything about him. Oh sure, he'll say his name sometimes in excitement or distress but does he give it any thought? No. It's something that's done unconsciously. The name doesn't have meaning. Kal doesn't pray to him, doesn't give him sacrifices.

Doesn't need him.

So I kind of get why Zeus didn't want to tell Superman. Because if he had, then Kal's eyes...those beautiful blue eyes...would have lit up in wonder and awe and joy...and he would think something along the lines of 'wow..._Rao_...my God...' and Rao doesn't deserve that. Doesn't deserve his gratitude or prayers.

Rao left.

He rejected his destiny.

All those people on Krypton...all their souls...they were crying in anguish, the day that they died. Wondering what was happening, because _that _wasn't what was fated to be.

He changed _everything_.

Abandoned _everything_.

How can a God do that?

Truth is, I don't like to think about _why _he left. Because if I start thinking about _why_...then I'll start to understand. And once I start to understand, I might, just might feel sorry for him. Or worse, I might start to wish that I could do it too, which frightens me.

Because there's a lot of things that I don't know.

I don't know how we came to be.

I don't know why bad things happen to good people.

I don't know why there seems to be so much more hatred than love.

But perhaps the biggest thing I do not know...

Is how to do anything else. It feels right, looking over Earth and it's creatures. Protecting it. Loving it. I feel whole.

This is my destiny. My purpose.

I don't understand why Rao did what he did.

I don't understand _how _Rao did what he did.

And I don't want to.

But I do understand one thing.

I understand that I have been here for as long as I can remember, and I'm going to stay here for as long as it lasts.

It might be forever, it might be until tomorrow.

I don't know.

But I know that I want to be here when it ends.

()

In my head this was Aphrodite talking, but this can be whoever you want it to be. I'm sorry if the first person point of view bothered anyone, but that's just how the chapter came out to me.

...did anyone guess who it was?

Anyone? XD


	12. Shut UP

The second he appeared in Mount Olympus, Hades immediately began regretting his decision.

"YOU SHOULD HAVE TOLD US! TOLD THEM! OUR CHILD COULD HAVE _DIED _DUE TO YOUR NEGLIGENCE!" Lord L'Zoril was shouting, and Hades felt a slightly pleased that he was able to recall his name. Until it sunk it. _L'Zoril _was _shouting_.

Okay, it had to be bad then.

The Earth Gods and two of the Martian Gods were having a standoff, glaring at each other in a rage-fueled way that had him rolling his eyes. Figures that when he finally decides to visit that it'd be right when they were in the middle of a shouting match. Ugh. _Drama bad_. Why didn't anyone else see this?!

A weird electrical feeling started to surge through his being and Hades managed to jump back _just _in the nick of time to avoid having H'ronmeer teleport on top of him. Stupid fire god with his inability to focus...

"He is seriously pissed off at us right now." H'ronmeer stated, rubbing his temples. "I'm talking stripping our powers pissed."

Seeing fire god calm and the dream god angry reminded Hades of yet again how _messed up_ things had gotten while he was away.

"We didn't know this was going to happen!" C'eridyall insisted, her eyes blazing. "Had no idea THAT SOME MAD _GOD _WAS OUT THERE PLANNING ON--"

Athena bristled. "Oh and we did?! We had no _idea _what was going through Rao's head! He's been g--" A _pulse _crashed into her body, making her fall to the floor with a groan. She knew she was immortal and all but seriously...ow.

The God of War snarled and responded by firing an energy bolt at the Martian Goddess, which was intercepted by Lord L'Zoril, who deflected it back. Ares absorbed it into his body, his dark eyes flashing. "Do NOT do that again." He'd gotten his title for a reason after all, and if they thought he was going to hold back just because they were Martian...they really had another thing coming.

Ignoring the little ego battle going on between the two, H'ronmeer turned towards Zeus, who was staring down at the scene below him. "You _knew_ that Rao was there. You _knew _that he was planning something. So why, _why _didn't you warn us? Warn _them_?"

The King of the Gods walked away from the scene, slumping down into his thrown with a defeated air about him. "I didn't...think he was going to do anything of this extent." He croaked. "...I didn't want...Kal-El to know of his return."

"**And that**" C'eridyall hissed. "**is what makes this YOUR fault.**"

Zeus said nothing.

()

Dick fidgeted in his seat once more as he shot a concerned look at Bruce's body, which they'd managed to move upstairs to the den. They hadn't been able to get him all the way to his room; he'd started shivering in his sleep halfway there. Upon seeing said shivering, Alfred had snapped at them to instead move him to the couch. He didn't really understand why but he'd helped to make Bruce as comfortable as possible, all the while peppering the butler with questions.

Except he _wasn't_ answering them. Not completely anyway.

The lights were out. The curtains were drawn. He wasn't allowed to turn on the TV or listen to the radio. Everything was so freaking _quiet_.

Alfred came back in the room once again and he scowled at the older man. "He's been out for hours."

"I'm well aware of that, Master Dick."

"Why?" He figured that pretty much covered all the questions he had to ask.

"I believe it's because he's tired."

His eyes narrowed. "_Why_?"

"Are you _three _Master Dick? Surely you are capable of forming more complex sentences than that?"

Dick gritted his teeth. Maybe he better start with the basics..."What's _wrong _with him?"

A blank look. One that lasted for quite a few seconds until Alfred suddenly blurted out, "He's mated to a Martian."

He felt his eye twitch. "Right, Alfred. _Cute._ REAL cute." Gave the couch a sharp kick, knowing that he was acting childish but not caring. "Why won't you tell me what's wrong?!"

"I just did, sir." The patronizing sigh that followed those words didn't sooth his temper _at all_.

Fear started to seep into his very bones as he screeched, "He's sick, is that it?! Is he dying?! He's dying isn't he!?"

A startled look. "I certainly hope not."

Dick fought to control his breathing, on the verge of hyperventilating. "Why—why won't you tell me?! You don't think I'm _mature _enough, IS THAT IT?!"

Alfred raised an eyebrow. "Whatever would give you that idea, Master Dick?"

"I AM MATURE! I AM _SO _MATURE!"

Tim chose that moment to walk in and at seeing Dick's face he tried to sneak back out...

"TIM!"

_Too late._

Saw Dick point at him and groaned.

"TIM! TELL ALFRED I'M MATURE!"

Rolling his eyes, he turned towards the butler and said in a dead-pan voice, "Alfred, Dick is totally mature."

At hearing his tone, Dick bristled. "I A--"

"**IF YOU DON'T **_**SHUT**__**UP**_** I'M GOING TO KICK YOUR **_**ASS**_**!!**" Bruce suddenly roared out, making all three of them jump ten feet in the air.

Alfred cleared his throat. "Master Bruce, _do _try to--"

"**Bite me!**"

Tim gawked, then decided that being in the same room as a temperamental Bat was _really _not smart and discreetly left the room.

Even though Bruce was yelling at him, like usual, Dick couldn't help but relax. If he was threatening to kick ass then things couldn't be _all _that bad, right? "Bruce, you're awa--"

"**SHUT.**_**UP**_**.**"

The death threat written in those sleep-filled blue eyes quickly made him back down, nodding his head up and down wildly. "O-okay...okay...quiet. I'll be quiet."

Realized he couldn't keep his promise and went to leave the room when Bruce muttered out, his words slurring slightly, "An' m'not dying...so shtop worryin..."

Dick smiled as he left the room, relieved. At seeing Tim snickering, the relief was soon replaced by irritation, as he snapped, "Thanks for sticking up for me there, _bro._"

"Oh come on! I told Alfred you were mature!"

He scoffed. "Yeah, but you didn't MEAN it!"

"I'm so sorry. I feel completely and utterly ashamed of myself."

"THERE'S THAT TONE AGAIN!"

"I DON'T HAVE A TONE YOU SISSY!"

"**GET OUT OF MY HOUSE!!**"

Twin gulps, as they registered the utter _rage _in his voice. "Sorry!"

Followed Tim as they moved away from the door and down the hall, towards the kitchen. "Do you know what's wrong with him?"

His younger brother shrugged. "According to Alfred he's mated to a Martian." He paused thoughtfully. "I don't know what that means but--"

"Wait you _believe _that?!" Dick asked, his eyes wide with disbelief. "Oh come _on!_"

"When has Alfred ever lied to us?"

Well...he had a point. But it was just so...mated...to a...to a...no. Just...just...no. No way. "How could that even—it's not POSSIBLE T--"

"**DICK!**"

"OH COME ON BRUCE! WE'RE NOT EVEN THAT CLOSE TO THE DAMN DOOR!" Dick yelled back, annoyed that their conversation kept getting interrupted.

"**ALFRED! I WANT THEM OUT!**"

The butler materialized out of nowhere and began leading them down to the cave. "I believe you'll be able to converse amongst yourselves down here without bothering Master Bruce."

Went to leave, only to stop as Dick blurted, "He's not _really _mated to a Martian, is he?!"

"**GODDAMNIT DICK!!**"

What his older brother shouted Tim wasn't really sure. It _sounded _something like 'blow it out your ass, Bruce!' but he could be mistaken, what with Alfred's hands covering his ears and all.

"_Master Richard!_"

Okay...judging by the use of Dick's first name...he was probably _right _on that account.

Dick responded by sinking into the chair in front of the batcomputer, a loud sigh escaping him. "_Sorry _Alfred." Wasn't going to apologize to Bruce though. Nope. Stupid bastard deserved it.

The stern look didn't lessen any. "Due to...certain...circumstances...Master Bruce's senses have evolved. As you can see, it is rather _difficult _for him to get a good rest."

"Evolved...so...like..._Superman, _kind of?" Tim asked, his voice low.

Alfred paused thoughtfully. "I suppose."

He let out a whistle. "Wow. That has to _suck_."

Dick coughed. "Soo I'm guessing...he...probably heard the whole...uh..." A glance at Tim. "_thing _I said...just now...?"

An amused look. "Most definitely, yes."

He groaned. "Great."

()

Hades stood back, his eyes closed as he absorbed everything he'd been able to gather so far. So Raowas back, hmm? And Instead of informing the League of it, Zeus had decided to keep it to himself.

_I didn't want...Kal-El to know of his return. _

He knew why.

Centuries ago, Zeus had sired a son. It wasn't his first nor his last, but the child had been marvelous. Strong, handsome, _smart _and kind. The biggest heart...he'd gone around helping those in need, doing good and thwarting evil.

Hercules.

Kal-El was so very much like him.

The Martian Gods had every right to be angry at Zeus. Hell, the _Earth _Gods were angry with him. And Hades was tempted himself to join the shouting party and berate him for letting his emotions overrule his judgment yet again. Had Zeus been anyone but his younger brother, he might have done so. Instead, he simply walked over and knelt next to Zeus, who was cradling his head in his hands.

"Zeus."

His head jerked up and Hades felt the last of his anger drain away as he looked into those miserable eyes. "I really messed up, Hades."

"Yes. You did. Now let's say we go about fixing it, hmm?"

There was one last self-pitying sigh, then his brother stood up, head held high, looking every bit the King he was thought to be. "This is what we're going to do..."

()

I'm sorry if it's not the touching heart-warming thing you were expecting but...it's the bat-family...since when do they do things normal? Seriously, I wanna know...


	13. Fired

Mates: The Sequel

Chapter 13

A/N: I'm sorry for the lull in updates. But this segment is coming to an end and I had to brainstorm for the next one. And I've come up with something that...well let's just say the plot smacked me so hard with its genius that I almost saw stars. o.o I think I may have a concussion! XD

()

The last thing he remembered was trying to tap into Superman's mind with his own. Then there was a searing pain in his head and all went dark. It hurt like nothing he'd ever felt before. Like his mind had exploded and all he could feel was **pain**.

Until a soft blanket seemed to wrap around him and washed it all away, leaving him surrounded by nothing but heaven. It was so nice and warm...he let out a cry of frustration when it left him. The pain didn't come back any but he now felt so unbelievably cold.

Why had it stayed? Why did it always have to _leave?_

J'onn pried his eyes open and blinked upon recognizing the interior of the medical wing.

What was he...?

"J'onn?"

Turned his head to the side, startled to find Flash standing over him. Didn't have a chance to ask anything though, before the speedster was talking again, "You really had us worried, you know. The others all woke up hours ago, even Hawk Girl. But not you--"

"What happened?"

Flash halted in his ramblings, shifting uneasily. J'onn waited, aware that it had to have been something bad, in order to cause Superman to snap like that.

A few more tense seconds, and just when he was about to ask again, Flash blurted out, "Don't get mad."

_That _immediately put him on his guard. Why would he get mad? It was no one's fault. It wasn't like Superman purposely let himself get taken over or anything. He'd sensed the creature inside the Kryptonian's mind. There was no _way _Superman could have stopped him.

He placed a consoling hand on Flash's arm. "I won't get mad, I promise."

For some reason that only made his teammate sigh. "Yeah, that's what _they _said too."

Glanced around the medical wing and noticed that he was the only one there. Then remembered Flash's earlier rambles. Right, they'd already woken up. "So you told them?"

"Yep. And they all got mad."

If they were angry over it...then it had to have been bad. Still, he wasn't really one to get angry. He was usually able to keep calm in situations where others blew up. "Flash, you can tell me."

A suspicious look. "And you won't get mad?"

"I won't get mad."

The red-clad superhero took a deep breath. "Okay...well...I'm sure you know about the dude in Superman's head?"

J'onn nodded.

"Right. Well...turns out, it had been in his mind for about a week or so and...Superman knew. And didn't tell anyone because he thought it wouldn't do anything."

His jaw actually dropped.

"Well then--"

"He _KNEW_?"p

"He said it felt safe! And that--"

"SAFE?! IS HE A FOOL?!"

"You said you wouldn't get mad!"

The Martian stood up, glaring down at Flash, who looked to be only a second away from running. "_Where _is he?!"

Flash bit his lip. "If you're going to yell at him, don't bother. Batman already beat you to it."

His rage died down at hearing that. Well...if Batman did it already, there was really no point. J'onn was _sure _that the Dark Knight had berated the Kryptonian for his stupidity. So anything he said to Kal afterwards would pale comparison. Slightly put off, he sunk back down onto the bed. "Batman?"

A small smile. "You know, you reacted the exact same way they did when I mentioned Bats." It was kind of amusing. They had all been ready to go and tear Clark a new one, until they learned that the Bat had already down it. Understandable though; if there was one person who knew how to hurt with words alone, it was him.

J'onn frowned. "What...was he doing here?" Hadn't they banished him to the manor?

"Who do you think stopped Supes?"

Golden eyes widened. "Batman took on that _thing_?"

"Yep."

That was...that...no..._impossible_. The man was _just _starting to get the hold of his mental powers. He wasn't even a beginner yet! So how did he manage to defeat a being _that _powerful? Asked Flash, hoping that maybe he'd have an answer but all he got was a shrug and a, "He's Batman.", as if that explained it all. Except he couldn't find it in himself to really get frustrated at such a reply because...it _did. _

However, he couldn't help but worry. Even though Batman was able to do what no one else could...he was still human. And he _had _to have suffered some injuries from saving them.

"Is he okay?"

Flash was silent for a few seconds. "I'm not sure. Superman said that he had a fractured jaw and a couple of cracked ribs. He didn't look...good."

He was in the monitor room typing in commands and in the process of being teleported when he became aware of what he was doing. Had he _forgotten_ about that little kiss incident between Bruce and Diana? What was he _doing_?! Panic started to settle in his stomach, knowing any second that he was going to be in the cave and once he was there there'd be no way to back out. Felt someone grab him and when he appeared...

It _wasn't _the manor he was in.

He didn't know if he should feel angry or relieved, as he gazed into H'ronmeer's eyes.

()

Bruce didn't know how Alfred managed to do it.

There was a cup of coffee and a nice warm plate of food being set on the table the second he was starting to wake up. Which, seeing how he was starving, smelled damn delicious. He sat up and grabbed the plate, shoveling food into his mouth, not caring if he looked like a pig. This was _his _house, and _his _food so he could eat it however the hell _he _wanted. All too soon he finished his meal and he stared down at the depressingly bare plate.

No...that couldn't be all, could it? More, he needed _more. _How could Alfred do this to him?! Yes the plate had been piled high and held twice as much as he usually ate but it wasn't enough.

The sound of the door opening cut off the thoughts of firing his butler, as he looked up and saw Dick entered the room. There was also a nice big plate in his hands and for a second he thought that it was for him, but then Dick took a bite out of it, crushing those thoughts. Had the _nerve _to sit next to him, with his _food_, taunting him.

An uneasy silence settled in the room, with Dick wondering if Bruce had _really _heard his comment, and Bruce wondering if he should punch his ward out and _then_ take his food, or just ask nicely.

His body was still incredibly sore ...so the punching would really _hurt_...

But asking nicely would probably only get him an eye-roll...

Dick coughed, fiddling with his food. "Hey...uh...Bruce...about that um..._thing_...I said...in the cave...about...you know..._blowing _something out of...a certain...somewhere...I uh..."

In all honestly, he had no clue what Dick was talking about. The last thing he remembered was threatening to kick ass if they didn't _**shut up**__. _Was he going to admit this? No. Because if he played his cards right... "Give me your food and I'll forget it ever happened."

More than happy to comply, he handed the plate over to Bruce, who promptly started stuffing his face again. Dick watched for a few seconds, amazed at how fast the food was disappearing and at how undignified he was acting.

Then he realized how _easy _it had been and groaned. "You have no _idea _what I said, do you?"

"None."

"Why didn't you just ask Alfred for some more?!"

"Because he's fired."

He gave Bruce a dry look. "What's he fired for this time?"

"Trying to starve me."

Dick shook his head. It would be useless to point out that his first plate had been actually a _tray_, which was more than he ate in a whole _day_. Alfred got 'fired' by Bruce on average about six times a week. Either because of his sarcastic remarks, waking him up too early in the mornings, trying to give him decaf instead of regular, making him stay in when sick or _trying to starve him_. Of course, it was never really serious. It was common knowledge that Bruce wouldn't last a week without Alfred there to take care of him.

The butler chose just then to enter the room and Dick looked at him sadly. "I'm sorry Alfred, I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

Old eyes twinkled. "I've been fired again, have I?"

He fought to keep a straight face as he said, "You should know better than to _starve _Bruce."

Alfred's mouth twitched slightly. "Of course. I seemed to have forgotten myself, sir." He looked down at the tray in his hands. "I _did _prepare this in case Master Bruce was famished upon awakening but since I am no longer working for him..."

At the mention of more food, Bruce perked up, almost done with his current plate. More? His mouth watered at the _smell _of it all... "You can stay."

"_Really_, Master Bruce? You'd truly consider giving me a second chance?"

If he still wasn't painfully hungry, he would have fired him again, but since he _was_, he only nodded. Alfred set the tray down and he attacked, growling a warning at Dick when his fork got too close for his liking. "Get your own!"

"I _had _my own!" Dick snapped, edging his fork closer. "You took it!" The growling was getting _louder_ and he wondered how Bruce was able to do that before another plate was set down in front of him. Smiled thanks at Alfred and went to dig in, only to gape. His plate was now _empty. _And wasn't it just _curious _how a certain pile on a certain tray looked _bigger_?!

He glared. "Bruce! That was mine!"

The older man stopped his chewing to stare at his ward. "_My _house." He pointed towards Alfred, "_My _butler.", down to his tray, "_My _food." then at his chest. "_Mine_."

Dick had to admit that there was truth to what he'd just said. But he still wasn't going to let it slide. "Alfred! Make him give it back!"

Bruce snorted. "Alfred just nearly avoided unemployment. He wouldn't _dare_."

The butler rolled his eyes, disappearing for a few seconds and reappearing with another plate. "I have plenty more made, Master Dick." He gave Bruce a sharp look. "This is for _Master Dick _and _Master Dick _only."

Shot a smug look at Bruce and started to eat his _own _food that was _his_ and _his _alone. A few minutes later and Tim entered the room, sitting on the other side of Bruce with his own plate. Waited for a hand to snatch something from Tim and frowned when it didn't.

"How come--"

"Tim flavors everything with Tabasco sauce. Nasty stuff." Made sure that Alfred wasn't around before stealing one of Dick's rolls.

"Hey!"

"If you were smart you'd learn to eat in the kitchen."

Fed up, Dick took his advice, storming out of the room.

Bruce and Tim continued munching in silence for a few more minutes, until Tim finished his and started staring at his plate with a dejected look on his face. He was going to have to get _up _and actually _walk _all the way to the kitchen and ask for more. Unless he asked Alfred to bring him another plate. But it seemed like so much _effort_...

He blinked when food suddenly started to appear on his plate. Pretty soon it was full again and a quick glance at the pile next to him told him that it was indeed smaller. Went to say thanks when Bruce suddenly stiffened, staring at a spot in the corner.

"Bruce?"

He ignored the question, instead concentrating on the two weird strangers who had just appeared in his den. He recognized one as the woman who hung over his bed sometimes, but the other one was male and dressed in leather. There was a sort of dangerous energy coming off the man and for some reason he felt a slight connection with him.

"So what, teleport him now?", the woman was asking.

The man narrowed his eyes. "Aphrodite, he's _eating_."

"You didn't have a problem about teleporting Green Lantern. And he was getting undressed!"

A huff. "We can wait until he finishes eating."

"Zeus gave us orders Ares."

"It shouldn't take him that long to finish!"

"You're only saying that because he's your favorite."

"So?"

Bruce watched them squabble some more, his mind turning over what he'd just heard.

Aphrodite.

Goddess of Love.

Ares.

God of War.

Zeus.

King of the Gods.

So _gods _were involved. Oh it _figured_. They probably knew what had happened with Superman too.

"We've already teleported the others--"

"I'm sure they won't mind being in Mount Olympus a little longer. They're probably wetting themselves in excitement."

He was still hungry but...well...he _supposed _finding out what it was that had nearly killed off the League was more important than filling his stomach. Wouldn't have to change either, seeing how he was still in costume... With a sigh, he put his fork down and walked over to them. "I'm ready when you are."

Ares smirked and grabbed a hold of him, wrapping an arm around his waist and giving his ass a firm _squeeze_ before teleporting him away.

()

Hawk Girl was having a conversation with Artemis about her home planet, and sharing a few stories. Apollo was talking to Green Lantern while occasionally shooting Hawk Girl dark looks. Wonder Woman was talking to Hera, though she mainly stuttered over her words, in awe about how she was finally able to meet her Goddess. Hera, for once, didn't have a scowl on her face, and was smiling compassionately. Hermes, Dionysus and Athena were all standing around Flash, the first two laughing over one of his jokes and the later smiling with a wistful look on her face. Hephaestus was chatting animately to Batman, who was actually answering back, all the while keeping a stern eye on Ares, who kept _smirking_ and trying to move closer. J'onn was glaring at the God of War while talking quietly to C'eridyall, who was trying to calm his nerves down.

This was the sight Hades saw upon teleporting back in Mount Olympus, his arm still around Superman, who was looking a bit sulky. No doubt put off that the god had managed to get to him in the Fortress. The second they appeared, all talking ceased. The gods because the mortals had stopped and the mortals because they were all too busy glaring at the Kryptonian. Except Flash. He just looked apologetic.

Briefly, Hades wondered if the leaguers would start shouting, but they never did. Huh. Maybe _they _understood that drama was bad. That was refreshing; maybe he'd check in on them more often...

Zeus cleared his throat and all eyes landed on him. "We don't have a lot of time to waste. So let's just get to the point." Unknowingly to him just managed to gain a fraction of respect from Hawk Girl, Lantern and Batman.

"You know what happened. Someone entered Kal's mind and made him lose control. You also know that Kal had been aware of said presence for a few days and didn't come forth."

At those words, the eyes turned to Superman with sharp intensity, who winced.

"But you don't know _who_. And until you _do _perhaps you should hold out on the judging." Athena added, pleased when the glares lessened.

Sighing, Zeus leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes, thinking that perhaps it would be easier if he couldn't see. It wasn't. He didn't want them to know. Didn't want _Kal _to know. But that was what had started this whole thing in the first place, and it was time he did what was right.

"Rao is back."

Aphrodite felt her heart shatter as she watched the emotions racing across Superman's face. First was amazement, as she had expected, from the thought that his god had returned. But then reality sunk in and he remembered just _what _Rao had nearly made him do. "I...I don't understand. Rao is...kind, and _loving _and...this...this is _wrong_." He swallowed thickly. "You're _wrong_."

Surprisingly, it was Hera who spoke up. "Scriptures _lie _Kal-El. Rao abandoned Krypton and it's people. It was the first time you had felt him and not knowing what he was or what he did, you trusted your god, like your instincts were telling you to. Rao took advantage of that."

The Kryptonian shook his head, not wanting to believe it. "I don't—It doesn't make sense! If he's so _evil _then why did he come back?! _Why would he--_"

"Because he hates you." Hermes stated quietly, his usual cheerful demeanor gone. "He left because he couldn't handle his destiny. When Krypton exploded he thought his problems were solved. Then, turns out that not all his children were dead. He feels _everything_. Your pain, happiness, misery, anger, wants, needs, accomplishments, crushes...and he _hates _it. So he thought if he could fix things, maybe solve whatever it was that was bugging you, he could finally have peace."

Went to say more, only to be startled when Flash snapped, "Hey! I think he _gets _the picture." Sure the speedster supposed that they wanted Superman to understand just how bad of a god Rao was but he didn't see the point in crushing his spirits even further. He already looked depressed, they didn't need to add to it.

Wonder Woman nodded, agreeing with Flash. "I think we need to instead think up a plan."

He didn't _want _to drop the subject. There was a desperate part of him that wanted Kal _understand_...but Zeus knew she had a point, so he relented. "Very well. Rao has yet to leave, making us believe that he's planning something. So we'll each be taking watch over the League."

Batman's eyes narrowed. He wasn't sure if he liked the idea of gods baby-sitting them but if Rao attacked again, then it would most definitely spell trouble. Last time he'd nearly killed three members of the League. (Four if he counted himself, but he didn't). So it would probably help to have insurance. After all, what better protector against a god then another god?

Besides, they didn't really have much of a choice.

()

How'd ya like it?? XD


	14. Tick, tock

Mates: The Sequel

Chapter 14

Even though An hour had passed up on Mount Olympus, it seemed that almost an entire _day _had passed on Earth. They had been teleported back to where they had been before being snatched. Flash appeared in the medical wing. Green Lantern had been put back in his apartment. Hawk Girl was returned to her room, Superman to the Fortress, Bruce to his den and Wonder Woman to the Monitor Room.

_Tick..._

Unfortunately, J'onn had been in the middle of teleporting to Bruce's place. So he appeared in the freaking _cave_, scaring the crap out of Dick and Tim, who had been suiting up to go out as Nightwing and Robin. They stared at him with wide eyes, and he was starting to think he had scared them to death.

Knew he should say something or preferably phase through the floor and _leave _while he still could...but he couldn't even _think_, much less _move_ or _talk_. And it seemed they were in the same boat, for they was just as frozen.

Eons seemed to pass, until suddenly Alfred was there, materializing out of nowhere like usual.

"Ah, Master J'onn. Good to see you."

That seemed to snap the Martian out of his stupor. "Alfred. I was just..." He bit his lip. "Leaving."

A raised eyebrow had J'onn suddenly feeling like he was a child. "I...that is...the League is very busy and...they..." Why was it so hard to _lie _to the man?!

"Master Bruce is upstairs. Allow me to show you the way."

_...tock..._

And why couldn't he say _no_? He didn't-couldn't-_wouldn't_ see Bruce. Not after what he'd done. Opened his mouth to say so, but the butler was already halfway up the stairs. "Try not to fall behind, Master J'onn."

It was _so _tempting to phase through the floor but he felt powerless to defy the man. It wasn't _possible._

Dick gave him a consoling pat on the shoulder. "It's okay. We can't say no to him either."

Sighing, he followed Alfred up the stairs, stopping just outside the den, where he could sense Bruce.

Gave one last try at gaining his freedom. "The League is probably expecting me back by now--"

"I trust you can see yourself inside?" His efforts were in _vain_. Dread seeping into his very being, he entered the room, wanting to turn around and _run_.

Except he couldn't because Alfred was standing behind him and it wasn't _possible _to say no.

()

Bruce stared at J'onn, then turned to glare at his butler, who was now leaving the room.

"You do realize that you're fired again."

The door shut and he tugged on the handle, growling when he discovered it was locked.

"I'll let you out when you_ talk _to one another Mater Bruce, and not a minute sooner."

The locked door wasn't really a problem. He could pick it in under ten seconds. But instead, he slumped back down on his couch. One day he was going to find a way to tell Alfred to _shove it_ and when that happened...

A mental snort. _Hell will freeze over._

..._...tick..._

Glanced over towards J'onn and saw him staring at the door, no doubt wondering _why _he couldn't just make himself phase through it and _leave_.

"It's impossible to say no."

The _glare _that was thrown his way quickly had him lose what small sense of humor he'd been gaining about the situation.

Why was J'onn mad at _him_? If anything he should be angry at _Diana_.

Watched the Martian continue to stare at the exit for a few more minutes, until he decided that the sooner they got everything all out in the open, the better.

"J'onn, it was just a kiss. Nothing happened."

"A kiss." His voice was flat, managing to sound emotionless and full of rage at the same time. "Are you _aware _that what you did is the equivalent of _cheating_?" He smoothly walked over to face his _mate_, who was narrowing his eyes.

"What _I _did?"

_...tock..._

"YES!!" J'onn exploded, his head reeling from all the emotions spilling out of the small bottle he'd kept them in. The hurt, humiliation, betrayal and _anger_. It was all boiling out and soon he didn't have any control over what he was saying or doing, as his hand snaked out and slapped Bruce, wanting him to feel _some _of the anguish he'd felt that night. "You _betrayed_ me! You've _tainted _our sacred bond! How could you do this?!"

No answer. The silence only served to fuel his rage. How could he not _say something_?! How could just _sit _there without feeling _anything_?! Again, he lashed out, his anger fading when this time he was rewarded with a painful grunt. But still, his _mate _said nothing, just staring at him with an unreadable expression in his eyes. Until he slowly up and walked past him the door, grasping the handle.

"Diana kissed me. I pulled away and told her I was your mate. She apologized and left. That's all."

_...tick..._

J'onn was completely stunned. He'd just assaulted his mate for something he didn't do, which if the alien had thought about it, rather than letting his emotions cloud his mind, made sense. Bruce was nothing if not loyal. But he'd just seen the lipstick, smelled the perfume and thought...

His anger had made him act without thinking and now... now there was this big aching rift between them that had been caused by _his _doing. Not Bruce's. His.

Six seconds later the door was opened. "I think you should leave."

The closed off tone in his voice made him wince. Bruce had let down his barriers and had allowed him to see a part of him that was shown to a select few. And J'onn had returned the favor with accusations and blows.

"Bruce--"

"Now."

_...tock..._

()

Weeks passed by without anything from Rao. It was unnerving with the dark god being so close by, yet doing nothing other than _watch_. Didn't get close to Clark or the Gods protecting him, seeming to be more interested in observing the other Leaguers. Didn't go anywhere _near _Batman, which was something none of them could quiet figure out. The one who posed the least threat to the god had to have been the human.

..._...tick..._

Yes he'd made Rao withdraw his attack on Clark's mind but only because Rao had realized the human was right. They even tried to lessen the protection around Batman, to see if perhaps he was merely faking, but still he payed almost no attention to him. He spent a lot of time watching J'onn. Why, they didn't know, but they were determined not to take any chances, so L'Zoril, H'ronmeer and Athena were guarding the Martian.

But perhaps the biggest mistake they made was not challenging the god head on.

_...tock..._

()

_Because he hates you_.

His God hated him...his only God...hated him.

Kal wasn't sure how he felt about that. After all, until a few weeks ago, he hadn't even been aware his god was _real_. He didn't give much thought when saying Rao's name, it was just something he felt made him closer to his people.

To Krypton.

..._...tick..._

Rao had _left_.

How was he supposed to feel about that? Hurt? Rao left. Abandoned the planet. Okay, he got that, he did, but it still didn't make him feel anything.

_Because he hates you. _

It was that one sentence that made him sad, made a part of his soul that he hadn't even known was there, cry out in agony. It caused thoughts to run through his mind, thoughts that were so weak and pathetic...but he couldn't _stop _them.

_Hates me...? My God hates me? Why? What did I do wrong? Why doesn't he love me? Why'd he leave? Why'd he come back?! Hates me. Why? Why why why why why? What did I do? Can I fix it? Have to fix it. Can't hate me. Why does he hate me? Why? _

He closed his eyes tightly as he tossed and turned in his bed, trying to make it _stop_. It wasn't right. Didn't make _sense. _He didn't know anything about Rao and Rao obviously didn't care anything for him if his actions were anything to go by. Weeks ago he had been blissfully unaware of his god's existence and he had been just _fine_. So why was it...

_...tock..._

That he couldn't get over it? Couldn't stop _thinking _about the fact that his God _hated _him?

It wouldn't leave him alone, eating away at his mind until it was practically consumed his thoughts. Something in him just _rebelled _at the fact that he was _hated _by Rao. It screeched at him, saying that it wasn't _right_. His god was supposed to protect and _love. _

His god wasn't supposed to make him feel this pain. Wasn't supposed to try and make him _kill _his teammates. So why?

What had he _done _to deserve such scorn? Such hatred?

..._...tick..._

Rao was the God of Krypton. Krypton was home. He was Kal-El, the Last Son of Krypton. Without Rao...

Yes, he was useless without Rao.

Curling into a ball, Kal let out a whimper, trying to fight the tears that threatened to break loose.

_Don't hate me. I'm sorry. Don't hate me. Tell me what I did wrong...so I can fix it._

_Tell me how I can make you love me again._

_...tock..._

()

They didn't talk.

Didn't say anything as they sat next to each other in the monitor room, staring out over Earth.

_...tick..._

Her lips were pulled down in a sign of worry and Flash hated the way it made her look.

So he took her hand in his and gave it a squeeze to let her know that he was there, and that he wasn't going to go away.

_tock..._

"Something's going to happen, Flash."

_...tick..._

"Probably, yeah."

_...tock..._

Diana pulled her hand away. "I mean it. Some-someone's going to die."

His heart seemed to drop down to his feet at hearing those words.

_...tick..._

"Don't..." His voice shook slightly and he cleared his throat to get rid of the annoyance. "Don't say things like that."

Tears slid down her cheeks. "Flash, I don't _want _to be right but this feeling is telling me that I am and I think it might be--"

A blink and suddenly he had her in a painful embrace, but she didn't try to get out of it.

"_Don't_."

_...tock..._

"Flash..." Her voice was pleading with him, asking him to let her talk. She needed a friend right now, needed someone to confide to. And he knew that asking her to keep this to herself wasn't right but...he didn't want to hear this. Didn't want to have her confirm what he was already feeling in his bones. If it was just him, then he was merely being paranoid. If it was her too...  
So he shoved away the part of him that wanted to tell her to let it all out, the part that wanted to be a friend.  
"_Please._"

She nodded and he let her go, slumping back into his chair. Neither of them said a word for several minutes, until Flash whispered, "I'm sorry."

Diana gave him a bitter smile. "So am I."

()

Unknowingly to Kal, Rao was quite aware of what was going through his mind. He _was _a god after all. Such information was quite easy to get a hold to. Hermes had been so _foolish, _really, to tell him the truth. What did he think would happen? That Kal would just be able to_ accept_ it? Really he thought that Zeus would be smarter than that...There was still a _bond _between him and his _Child_. One that caused him much aggravation but for now was coming in handy as Kal's soul began to cry out. It was natural for someone to want their god to _love _them. Only very strong-willed people could handle such the fact that their God hated their very _being_.

And after everything that had happened to Kal so far, with him losing control, almost killing his friends and getting _blamed _for it...

His will-power was almost nil. Which made his job rather _easy_.

Rao didn't know why the others were standing in his way of what he was trying to do.

..._...tick..._

He was _trying _to help Kal. The first time had been an accident; he hadn't been aware of how soft his _Child _had become from living with humans. Now he'd observed enough to know what it _really _was that Kal wanted. He was going to make Kal happy and then this stupid _bond _of theirs would fade and he wouldn't have to return to this droll planet ever again.

()

Something bad was about to happen. Something _really _bad.

It was a gut instinct that kept nagging at Hawk Girl day and night, never letting her rest. This feeling of dread had seeped into her bones and it _wasn't _leaving. It wasn't hard to believe. Superman had snapped not too long ago due to a crazy god that was _still _running around, planning who knew what. So she believed her gut when it told her that the shit was about to hit the fan—and fast. Time was running out and she couldn't stop thinking. About the future, her home planet, _Earth, _Superman...

_...tock..._

Green Lantern.

John Stewart.

No matter how hard she tried to stomp out the feelings she had for the man they kept rising up again, more powerful than ever. He was strong, handsome, smart, determined, a great fighter..._sane_. The only one who really seemed to understand her sometimes. She'd never had a feeling as bad as this one before. The feeling that something was being set to go off and the aftereffects would forever change _everything_.

The what ifs started up.

What if...she died?

What if..._he _died?

While the feeling wasn't that precise, and she didn't think either of them _would_, one could never be sure about such things. The bomb that only she could hear was slowly ticking away, picking up speed as the days passed and making Hawk Girl grow more and more anxious.

_I don't want to have any regrets._ Shayera realized, as she laid on her bed that night. _I don't want...to wonder...what could have been..._

A knock sounded out at her door and it didn't surprise her at all to hear John's voice, asking her if she was okay. Because really, no one did know her any better than he did.

_Tick..._

Whispered for him to come in, her heart racing wildly as she tried to calm down. But her gut was reminding her of how little time she had left.

_...tock..._

His eyes, those intense eyes, were staring at her with concern, asking her if she was okay. Moved closer to him, needing to make sure that there was still time...

..._...tick..._

Suddenly her lips were covering his, desperate to feel something other than panic and worry. To forget for two seconds who she was and what was going on around her.

_...tock..._

He went completely stiff and her throat started to tighten. Surely he could give her that? Two seconds? There _had _to have been enough time left for that.

_...tick..._

Then the kiss was slowly returned and he didn't make her forget any, but that was okay because he made it more bearable by simply _being _there.

_...tock..._

Broke away to gasp for air, running a trembling hand over his face, trying to imprint it to memory. It was _important _that she remember everything about this moment.

_...tick..._

"Shayera?"

_...tock..._

"Promise me..." Her voice faltered. What could he promise? Not to die? He wouldn't be able to keep it. Anything could happen when the bomb went off. _Anything_. But it wasn't going to be just anything. It was going to be huge. Tears fell and while she knew she had to be scaring the shit out of him right now there wasn't any _time _to be sorry or ashamed.

_...tick..._

A surge of desperation crashed into her, causing her to push him towards the bed. If he gave any protests, they were swallowed in another kiss, and then another, until she finally stopped, knowing what she wanted him to promise her.

_...tock..._

"_Promise me that no matter what happens you'll remember this moment, right here. Right now."_

_...tick..._

"_Shayera, I don't under--"_

"_Please. Just...I need you to promise."_

He _had _to promise.

_...tock..._

Green eyes locked with hers and after a tense moment, he nodded and started to remove her clothing. He still didn't understand at all, but he knew that she _needed _this...and there was something telling him that it was important that he not let this opportunity pass. That it wouldn't happen again for a long time.

_...tick..._

So instead of pushing her away and demanding answers, he chose to wipe away the tears. To make _this moment_, the one that he was promising to remember, as perfect as possible.

_...tock..._

And it was, in every way.

_...tick..._

_...tock..._

_...tick..._

_...tock..._

_...tick..._

_...tock..._

_...tick..._

_...tock..._

_...tick..._

_...tock..._

_...tick..._

_...tock..._

_BOOM!!_

The bomb had gone off; time was out.

But Shayera wasn't afraid of what might happen anymore.

Because John had promised.

And he was a man of his word.

()

I hope you guys liked it! o.o I'm sorry if Hawk Girl and J'onn seemed out of character...I just...wanted to include this in there.../ dun hate meh. In my mind J'onn let his anger take over and well... o.o once you see the next chapter...you'll probably understand why Hawk Girl's oh-shit feeling was so strong.


	15. Mistakes

Mates: The Sequel

Chapter 15

()

Bruce kept telling himself to ignore the god that was standing behind him, poking through his things. It shouldn't have been that hard; he had no problem ignoring the other gods when they decided to pop around (which wasn't often).

However, for some reason, he found it _impossible _to ignore the God of War. There was this dark energy that radiated from him, dangerous yet...enriching at the same time. It had him turning away from the computer screen and focusing on Ares, when really he wanted to do nothing but the exact opposite.

"Do you _mind_?" He hissed, wanting the strange god _out _of his cave.

Ares shrugged, waving a hand dismissively. "No, go on ahead. I'm just looking."

"Looking doesn't involve touching."

The god turned to stare at him and suddenly Bruce found it just a little harder to breathe as a strange tingle started to travel up his spine. "I'm the God of War."

Was that supposed to mean something? God or not, he didn't appreciate having his privacy violated. Especially by _him_. Someone he just _couldn't _ignore no matter how hard he tried...

Bruce shifted slightly in his chair, the tingling starting to grow uncomfortable. He knew who was responsible; he didn't know _how_ but he _knew _that it was Ares' doing.

"Stop that."

The tingling lessened and he turned back to the computer, determined now more than ever to ignore the god.

Who unfortunately didn't get the hint and was now leaning against the back of his chair, reading over his shoulder. "Oh, hey. The little birdies are out..." Ares rested his chin on Bruce's shoulder, paying no attention as to how the human was stiffening at the contact.

He _really _wanted to move but he didn't want to give the god the satisfaction so he stayed put, his jaw firmly clenched shut.

"You know...I really don't _like _them. Nightshade and Raven." Ares paused, wanting to see if the he would be corrected, but it seemed that Bruce still believed the whole 'ignore it and it'll go away' thing. Ah well. "I like it when _you're _out there, protecting Gotham. In that _tight _suit of yo--"

"Is there a _point _to this conversation?" He interrupted peevishly, not wanting to hear where the god was going with this. He'd been wary of Ares ever since he'd grabbed his ass. It had been _entirely _unnecessary and if he hadn't been so nauseous due to the teleporting he would have probably punched the shit out of him. Sure it wouldn't have hurt the man, seeing how he was immortal but...it would have made him feel a _hell _of a lot better.

The smirk he got told him that his thoughts had been heard. "It wasn't _necessary _but it was _very _satisfying. I don't know why you choose to hide that ass of yours behind a cape."

Silence.

He frowned when he was being ignored again. He couldn't _stand _that. But no need to let the _human _know... "You know, we have a connection, you and I."

"I gathered." Ares was the only one whose energy really had any effect on him. However, it wasn't really something that he cared about. What he _did _care about were the six thugs Nightwing and Robin were taking on right now.

Turning his attention fully towards the small battle, his eyes taking in every detail, tense and ready to--

"Robin, DOWN." The order came just in time for him to avoid a swing to the head with a lead pipe, and the teen gave the thug a sharp kick to the knee, followed by a blow that knocked the man out. He didn't get a thank you, but then again, Bruce hadn't been expecting one. That wasn't how they worked.

Things went smoothly after that and he allowed himself to relax when the two were back to patrolling the city. He still kept his eyes on the screen though; just in case they missed something. Satisfied that all was quiet for the moment, he leaned back into his chair and turned his attention to what the God of War was doing.

Which was...

_Pouting_.

He was _pouting_. Rolling his eyes, he brought up some files, one of the cases Nightwing had asked him to take a look at. He could see why it was bothering him; someone was--

"How can you _not _care?!"

Bruce snorted, "Very easily."

He checked back on the cameras and frowned.

Nightwing was running along a rooftop. That wasn't abnormal by any means but there was something tickling in the back of his mind. It took him a few seconds to realize what, but the vigilante had yet to reach the end so he still had time. "Nightwing, you're going to need to fire the grapling hook at a different angle, to the ledge above instead of the one to the right."

There was a sigh of exasperation. "That angle is going to make my shoulder--"

"It'll hurt, yes, but it won't dislocate it. There was a fire a week ago. Gotham has yet to begin repairs. It won't hold your weight."

Nightwing gave a growl of annoyance as he snapped, "I know what I'm doing!"

Bruce felt his temper boil but said nothing in reply, knowing that Nightwing was going to go against his advice just for spite. Sure enough, he fired the grappling hook at the same ledge and swung off. The metal held his weight for all of five seconds before giving away and he started to plummet fifty stories. Acting on instinct, he quickly managed to fire another line, this one managing to hold and he landed on the ground safely.

"Not a word, Batman. Not a _word_."

Robin's voice was heard over the frequency as he chortled, "Well he _did _warn you—"

"That goes for you too Robin!"

"Yeah yeah..."

He smirked before peering at the case file again, silently wondering if he should give it to Oracle to look at or not. A few weeks ago she said that she was investigating something. Wouldn't say _what _only that she needed more information. It was irksome but he realized she had a point; if there _was _trouble brewing it would be best that she be as informed of the facts as possible. But for now they were on their own. Not a problem, really. Made things a bit slower, perhaps, but challenging. And he loved a challenge...

"I just told you we have a _connection. _I'm the God of War! Aren't you _curious_?"

Bruce read the list of people suspected to be in on the stunt, his eyes narrowing in concentration. None of them sounded familiar. Which meant they had no clue what they were going up against. No idea who to interrogate, which ones would snitch if given the right..._motivation..._

"Well? Aren't you?!"

"No."

_Wait..._ the last one. _Darrel Mathews..._ That name rang a tiny bell in the back of his mind and he quickly tapped a few keys on the computer, opening up a few files. If he was _right _then that would mean they finally had a way _in _and they could shut down their little operation before it was able to take off. His body coursing with adrenaline, he began taking notes, all the while making slight dictations in his head.

His eyes suddenly started to blur and he forced his hands to still, focusing on getting his breathing under control. _Calm down...**focus**..._

Ares sighed dramatically, bored with how _quiet _Bruce was being. "No fun at _all_..."

"Don't you have a Kryptonian to watch?", He grounded out, instantly regretting it when it caused his vision to swim further.

There was a spike of energy and then everything was right again, the world coming in perfect. Ares had teleported out. The god's aggravation must have been what caused his senses to react. After checking on Gotham once more, he went back to the case, his mind turning over possible ways to get to Darrel. Darrel knew Matches and almost trusted him but he couldn't go out in disguise in his current condition...but _maybe..._

()

Something in him was changing. It was like this...part of him was being shoved out of place, making him feel off balance. For a split second he couldn't _move, _as a strange pulse of energy rushed over him. It made Flash feel uneasy, as there was something about the energy that just _screamed _'oh shit'. It was an unusual and suddenly he felt like he was being smothered with unbelievable _rage_...until it died down and he was able to breathe again.

"_**What...**_" Wonder Woman choked out beside him, her face pale and hands shaking, "..was _**that**__?_"

So he wasn't the only one that had felt that then? That was...good. A bit frightening, but kind of nice. It meant he wasn't going crazy if she felt it too. Or it could mean that Wonder Woman was just as crazy as he was...

But he didn't _feel _crazy...well there was definitely something loose in his mind, but it didn't feel bad. In fact...he felt slightly more..._free_...less restrained...for some reason...

Still, that didn't really mean that was a _good _thing...

"How's Superman?"

Her snappish tone that normally bounced off him had him bristling irritably, which again, was _weird..._but he bit his tongue and chose to look at the monitor, the one that was watching over Supes. It had been an extra precaution that they refused to budge on, no matter how much Clark pouted. Yes, the gods were supposedly watching but _they _needed to watch also.

But none of that mattered. Because Superman wasn't _there. _

He was _gone_.

Flash's jaw dropped. Where in the _hell _did he go?! "He...he's _gone..._"

Wonder Woman blinked. "_What?"_

"Oh this is _sooo _not cool..."

Quickly, she contacted Hawk Girl and Green Lantern. "We have a problem..."

Their voices sounded...odd...but she didn't really have a lot of time to ponder on that because Clark was missing and there was a very good chance he was being possessed by Rao right now...which was _not _good...

The speedster let her explain to them the situation, raising his head to stare up at the ceiling. Were the gods watching now? Did they know what had just happened? Should he tell them just in case?

He cleared his throat. "Uh...guys...if you're up there...um...Supes...escaped...and that's kind of _bad_...sooo you might want to..."

Athena and C'eridyall appeared, both looked quite pissed. "He _what_?"

()

Aphrodite absolutely _hated _teleporting to Batman's little cave.

It was drafty, dark and _depressing. _

Not to mention it was probably littered with spiders and other crawly things that had numerous legs...the mere _thought _of it was enough to make her skin crawl. And the _bats_. With their beady eyes, high pitch screams and filthy wings...

_Reaaaally hate it here..._

So why was she here? Why was she standing in this dark place, trying to think of a way to approach the human who was sitting in front of the computer? She could be up in Mount Olympus, feasting on ambrosia. Or even helping Ares keep watch over Superman...

But no.

Instead she was _here. _

In the cave.

Which was utterly _gross_.

But she couldn't stay away. Not when she could _feel _how unhappy Bruce was. He and J'onn may not have been in love, no, but that didn't make the Martian's accusations hurt any less. His moodiness was nagging at her and she felt the need to do something, to _fix _it...

Only she really had no clue _how._

Bruce was gazing at the screen with an intense look of concentration on his face, utterly absorbed in whatever he was doing, lips moving silently. Every once and a while he'd click a button and the screen would shift from letters to Nightwing and Robin patrolling Gotham. He'd observe their actions for a few minutes, occasionally making a comment or asking a question but for the most part he left them alone.

He was obviously very busy and she _really _didn't want to be here...

Perhaps it would be for the best if she left...

"What do you want?"

His cold tone alerted her to the fact that he was now facing her way, and Aphrodite frowned. How was it that he was able to see them even when they were invisible? It had to be a newly acquired talent; he'd never noticed before. He _couldn't_ have with all the times Hephaestus popped down to oogle at his gadgets. If the Bat really _knew _how often the lame god actually showed up in the cave...he'd probably put up some sort of ward to keep gods out.

And knowing _him _it would probably work too.

How would he do it? What material would he use? Would it be all the time or would he have a button to control it? Maybe he'd...

After waiting for the goddess to speak for a few seconds, Bruce decided that there couldn't be any emergency and turned back to his project. Most likely she was there to check up on him to see how he was doing. The other gods stopped keeping watch over him a few weeks ago, something he wasn't quite sure how to feel about. A part of him was relieved to have his privacy back...yet another part wondered why. Logic said that Rao wasn't interested in a mere human but...something told him he was _wrong..._

And he _hated _being _wrong..._

"J'onn..."

_It speaks._

"If that's all you came to talk to me about, you can leave." He snapped, refusing to turn around this time. _J'onn _wasn't someone he wanted to talk about right now. Or ever.

Rolling her eyes, she walked over and plopped on top of the keyboard, her form too light to press down on any of the keys, but heavy enough to grab his attention. He growled, annoyed that she was interfering with his work. First Ares and now _her. _He wondered if there was some type of ward he could make to keep the annoying gods _out _of his cave.

"J'onn...he...you..." Aphrodite groaned. This would be _so_ much easier if Bruce was just a regular human with regular human problems. But he was _Batman_. And to add on top of all the things wrong with _that_...he was also mated to a _Martian_.

Love wasn't supposed to be that hard.

Boy/Girl meets other Boy/Girl.

They fall in love.

Have a few spats, grow stronger along the way, pop out a couple kiddies...

Happily ever after.

The END.

That was generally how it went down. But of course Bruce couldn't follow that pattern. Oh no he had to go and be all... _Batmany..._with his impossible willpower, stubbornness and just plain _weirdness..._

"Can you...really _blame _J'onn?" She finally asked, unable to come up with anything else.

"Can I _blame_ J'onn for jumping to conclusions and assaulting me?" He mocked, pretending to think about it for a few seconds before saying, "Why..._yes_...I think I can."

"You had _lipstick _on you. What was he _supposed _to think?" Aphrodite pointed out, huffing when she got no reply.

Figures that he'd ignore her when he just _knew _how right she was... "Bruce just..._talk _to him. He feels _really _bad about what happened."

He sighed, running a hand through his hair in an effort to sooth his nerves. It wouldn't do any good if he got any more worked up. He had to calm _down. _

_You betrayed me! You've tainted our sacred bond! How could you do this?!_

When J'onn had attacked him like that, he'd been ready to snap, his temper so dangerously at it's breaking point...he'd been doing the _polite _thing by kicking the Martian out, no matter _what _Alfred said. Because if J'onn had stayed any longer he would have said some _really _cruel things and that would have only made things _worse. _

Now that some time had passed, he was still _angry _but...he was able to concede that the Goddess did have a point. He supposed the lipstick _did _look rather incriminating...but just the idea...that J'onn thought so little of him, to think that he would _cheat..._

His pride was bristling with indignation, causing his anger to flare up all over again.

So much so that he was beginning to wonder...

Whether or not it was worth it.

They didn't love each other. They weren't even _friends_. Friendship implied a level of trust and if J'onn thought that he'd _cheat _then evidently he didn't trust him at all. He didn't know a thing about J'onn's past and there were many things the Martian didn't know about him.

Such as how he always _honored _his commitments...

Was it worth it? Honestly it seemed too soon to tell. His anger was still flaring up over J'onn's words so right now his answer would have to be _no_...he needed more time to cool down, so he could think without _rushing to any conclusions like a certain __**Martian **__had..._

But Aphrodite was sitting right in front of him and she was _not _going to leave until he gave her some sort of answer..and he _really _wanted her gone...

"I'll think about it." It was the truth. Hell he was thinking about it right _now_.

Knowing that was the best she was going to be able to get out of him, she nodded and teleported away. Which was really kind of ironic; if she'd only stayed for a few seconds longer, she would have seen Superman flying into the cave...

()

The Gods were frantically talking amongst themselves, trying hard to come up with _some _sort of plan because Ares was missing and they weren't sure what to make of _that_. In order for Rao to get to Clark he had to have defeated the God of War. But _how _did he do it? How had this managed to get by them?! They had only looked away for a _second_. Almost two months had passed since Rao first started his stake out and he'd seemed to have fallen into a pattern. They couldn't watch over the leaguers _all _the time, there were other things in the world that occasionally called for their attention.

So they'd taken to watching over them when they could. It would only take a second to teleport if they were needed...

But apparently, that had been their mistake; letting their guard down.

Now Superman was _missing _and they had no clue where the Kryptonian went. Though most likely it was Rao in control of Superman's body...

Hawk Girl leaned back against the wall, trying hard to understand just what was going on. The bomb had gone off, the shit had hit the fan and everything was a _mess_.

Getting worked up wasn't going to help matters any. The others were all giving their two cents, trying to think of where Superman could _possibly _be. Would he go to the Fortress? No, Hera had checked. To the Planet? Dionysus and Hermes reported a negative on that. To Lois, perhaps? The reporter hadn't seen hide nor hair of the man. Maybe Luthor? He'd seemed rather _focused _on the villain last time Rao had possessed him. But no. Not there either.

Where _else_ could he be? They just didn't _know._ Hawk Girl let out an annoyed sigh, wishing that Batman was there. He probably had a whole _list _of places where Clark might be. Hell knowing the Bat he probably...had some sort of...tracking...thing...

Wait, speaking of the Batman, why _wasn't _he here?

Why hadn't the gods gone to get the man? Surely they realized how much he could tribute to their search, right? No one knew Superman better than he did. They were _The World's Finest_. No one could quite rile up Supes like Bats could...

_"Naked, BRUCE! **NAKED. YOU WERE NAKED! WITH A MARTIAN! A MARTIAN! NAKED! NAKED.**"_

_"I don't know what I find more disturbing. The fact that you only seem to remember my naked body..."_

_Clark started sputtering in denial._

_"...or the fact that my being with the Martian seems to disgust you."_

_The sputtering increased ten fold. And was accompanied by the changing of colors in his face._

_"I never pegged you for a racist, Superman."_

_"N...you...you...naked Bruce. Naked. With J'onn. **Naked with J'onn**."_

_The Bat nodded. "Which brings me to my point. You, are a perverted racist."_

... he was the only one who Kal really _talked _to. The only one Superman allowed himself to depend on.

_Watched with blurry eyes as Batman appeared at the scene, looking ready to drop dead. Superman's hand was still wrapped around Lantern's throat, and she wanted to help but every time she tried to move the **pain** would start up and she'd have to focus on not losing consciousness. _

"_Superman."_

_Lantern's body was tossed aside like a doll and she winced when rough hands grabbed onto Batman. Everything was calm; until Superman suddenly snarled and slammed him into the ground, backhanding him. Fought to rise to her feet, to do **something **to help, when Kal slumped over. Felt her body sag with relief and she finally succumbed to the darkness, knowing that everything was going to be okay. _

They _knew _each other.

_So why isn't... _Her eyes widened as realization sunk in. _Stupid! Of course! _

"BATMAN!" She blurted out, making everyone around her jump.

H'ronmeer stared at her for a few seconds, his eyes dazed, then shook his head. "What?"

"Batman. I think...that's who Superman's with." Hawk Girl explained slowly, pleased that her teammates understood why. It was the Gods that didn't have a clue.

Flash nodded, vibrating anxiously. "That makes sense. Supes totally has a thing for Bats..." A pacifying grin towards J'onn. "But don't worry! Bats isn't the type to stray."

The grin was meant to ease his nerves but it only made the Martian feel more depressed. Even _Flash _knew about his mate's loyalty. It was enough to make him depressed. Well, more so than he already _was..._

Zeus groaned, rubbing his temples. He was immortal, there was no _way _he should be feeling a migraine coming on..but the pressure was steadily building. "So of course that's the person Rao shows the _least_ interest in..."

At hearing his _tone_, Green Lantern closed his eyes in disbelief. "_Please_ tell me you didn't stop watching over him." This wasn't happening. Surely, being _gods _they'd be aware of such a simple trick, right?

The ashamed looks on their faces answered _that _question... "You _stopped?!"_

Athena cleared her throat, uncomfortable with the disbelieving looks the mortals were giving them. "We...Rao didn't seem to show much interest. _Any _interest, actually. And we just thought...well...he's _human_...so..."

But before they could start shouting at how stupid _that _thought was, Wonder Woman snapped, "We're wasting time. We need to get there, _now._"

()

"Your _first _mistake, was thinking you could possibly hope to take me on and _win_." Rao sneered in a mocking tone that normally would have had him bristling with anger, had he been able to feel anything besides _shock_ and _pain_.

Except he couldn't concentrate on anything other than the fact that there was a freaking _sword _in his stomach.

Normally that wouldn't have mattered. It was _supposed _to pass through him without damaging anything, because that was how things worked. The blade would pass through and _maybe _slow him down if he let it, and either it'd be pulled out or he'd just continue on, ignoring it.

Except a searing _pain _started, the second the steel pierced his skin, making him freeze in his tracks as a strange sticky fluid began leaking out. Raised his hands to feel around the _wound _that was there, his eyes widening.

_Blood?_

He fell to his knees, his body already beginning to shut down.

_This...isn't right...isn't possible..._

Rao towered over him, his eyes cold and gleaming with madness. "Your _second _mistake, was thinking that Gods can't die."

Watched him walk past, too weak to even blink. Die? He was going to die?

What...?

That wasn't...right...

When humans died...their souls went to the underworld, and from there to either Tartarus or Elysium. He was a god. Did he even _have _a soul? For the first time since his creation, he truly felt _fear._ There were no rumors or tales about an afterlife for gods because...

_Gods weren't supposed to be able to die. _

_Where do I go? _His world started to grow dim. _Who judges me? How do you judge a god? Am I just going to **cease** to exist?_And as he took his final breath...

_Who does a god pray to when they need help? _

And then Ares died, his body fading to nothingness. A pulse surged out through the entire _universe_; its energy causing every creature, animal, plant-life and god out there to freeze as something in them _shifted_. Whether it fell in the right hole, or got knocked _out _of the hole it was in, everyone felt it. For an instant Rao wondered about what he had just done, but then he shook it off. What did he care? Soon Kal would have what he wanted and he'd be able to leave.

Everything else was irrelevant.

()

Woohoo! ; REVIEW!


	16. Apology accepted

Mates: The Sequel

Chapter 16

()

Lust.

Want.

_Need._

It washed over him, wave after wave, bringing him under. It felt so _good_...filling his mind with pleasure and causing his member to grow stiff with arousal. His heart was pounding in his ears as hands roamed over his very _sensitive _skin, lips brushing against one of his soft areas. His back arched in response and those lips returned, running a tongue along the spot teasingly. He let out a moan, one that was quickly swallowed in a kiss that threatened to drive him over the edge. So _good...more...he needed more..._

Desperate, he blindly reached out, grabbing hold on to strong arms and returning the kiss, _needing _to feel more. And for a split second, there was nothing but bliss.

Until he felt something painfully erupt in his chest, causing him to gasp out as pure _agony _crashed into him, the pleasure being replaced by sharp twinges. His mind started to slowly come out of the fog it was in...and that's when Bruce realized just what the _fuck _was going on.

He was being pushed against the computer...and _kissed._

By _Superman_.

Well, actually, if he was being honest, kissed was putting it _lightly_. With those hands roaming everywhere..._felt up _seemed to fit the situation more.

The first thing he felt was _shock_. He didn't remember how the hell he got here. The last thing he remembered was telling Aphrodite that he'd think about talking to J'onn and the next...

Was Clark's _tongue _in his mouth.

He started to try and pull away but he was pressed right _up _against the computer and no matter how hard he struggled the alien was _not _getting the hint. It caused his rage to intensify because of all the things that had happened lately he did _not _need this. Gathering up all the energy he could in his arms, he gave the Kryptonian a hard shove. His efforts didn't even make him _move. _A surge of desperation coursed through him, giving him a burst of strength. _Get the--_

"_**FUCK OFF ME CLARK!" **_Bruce exploded when Clark finally stumbled back, giving him _much _needed space and breathing room.

Wiped angrily at his mouth, then froze as he looked into blue eyes and saw just how _cold _they were.

_You're not as strong as the Martian._

_No, I'm not. But I **will **make you leave._

"Rao.",He snarled, receiving a smirk in return. "What the _hell _are you doing?"

It was so _odd _seeing such an evil look on someone who went around saving kittens from trees on a daily bases...he noticed that 'Clark' was now edging towards him again and he quickly moved away from the computer, not wanting to relive _that _experience. Ever. Clark Kent was handsome, sure. But he was also idealistic, _naïve, _emotionally needy and a bit too clingy for his tastes.

"I'm giving my Kal what he wants. You."

Bruce narrowed his eyes. "Do you honestlythink he's going to be happy with getting me _this _way?"

A blink and 'Clark' was standing right in front of him. Damn. He sure wasn't wasting any time... "Once he has you I doubt he'll care how he _got _you."

"You don't know Clark at _all_." He growled, dodging an attempt to grab him. Being a man of numbers he knew the probability of being able to _stop _Rao was...zero. He wouldn't get to the stash of Kryptonite fast enough without getting knocked down first and _fighting _him would just result in a quick defeat. However the others _had _to have noticed Superman was missing by now, so his best bet was to try and keep the god occupied until assistance arrived.

It wasn't his _favorite _plan but it was one that would work.

But before he could even _open _his mouth he was pinned to the ground with Rao smirking down at him. The _smug _look on 'Clark's' face was enough to make his blood _boil_.

"You read my mind."

It wasn't a question but Rao answered anyway. "Correct."

Damn god was _enjoying _this. His limbs were positioned in a way where he couldn't maneuver his way out of the hold. Escaping with brute strength wasn't even an option worth considering. His mind started to race, knowing that Rao was probably reading his thoughts but it was all instinct, seeking out possible options and openings.

"You know...you weren't _complaining _a few seconds ago...I _wonder_..." The words were said in a mocking tone and he _hated _what they implied. If Rao was reading his every thought then that meant he _knew. _And he couldn't go back under that fog again. To the _pain._

The god leaned closer, brushing his lips against Bruce's, chuckling when the human's heart started to race. "Well _this _is certainly interesting...and it does make my job easier..."

Another wave of lust washed over him and soon he was drowning in it. Tried to find his center and fight but Rao was too strong and he didn't have nearly enough experience. There was no bliss this time. The arousal clouded his mind but he didn't feel any pleasure; the pain was back and it was growing as the seconds ticked by.

Oh _god _it hurt.

His skin was on _fire. _It was _burning_ and he could feel something circling around his arms in a strange pattern. It wasn't the god's doing; Clark's hands were currently undoing his shirt. No, this was an entirely new presence, feeling cool against his hot flesh. But it only brought more agony as blood started to drip down his arms. His mind kept shouting to _move; _to shove away _whatever _it was that was currently digging into his body but Rao was keeping him trapped in the fog and he couldn't do anything except writhe.

His soul was being torn apart. It felt like it was being ripped right out of him, bit by bit and he gasped out, wanting it all to _stop._

Bruce wasn't dying. No, he'd been through that before to know what it felt like.

And dying wasn't _nearly _as painful as what he was going through right now.

()

They arrived at the cave, tense and ready for battle. Admittedly, they didn't really have that much of a plan. Everything about this situation was off. But they were prepared to do whatever it took to beat Rao.

What they were _not _prepared for, was the site of 'Clark' trying to...well..._rape_...Bruce. And he seemed to be succeeding, seeing how the human wasn't protesting at all. In fact, he wasn't _responding _at all. He was limp, bleeding and growing paler by the second.

Aware of how crucial time was, they quickly snapped into action.

()

"Can you get him_ away _from Bruce?!" Hawk Girl shouted over the chaos, ramming her mace upside the Kryptonian's head, mentally wincing in apology to the real Clark. But she didn't really have any time to be sorry because ten seconds later he returned the favor, ten fold. She went flying into Apollo, who might have given her a dirty look before dodging a fist sent their way.

'Clark' was _still _holding onto the human's body. He refused to let go, thus making their attacks limited. They couldn't risk harming their teammate when he was in such an unstable state as it was.

"I'm _trying--" _Lantern bit off his reply to duck behind the giant penny, just in time to avoid the heat beams sent his way. "But what's to stop him from escaping?!"

Hermes dashed forward, Flash right by his side, matching him step for step as they raced around 'Clark' in an attempt to slow him down. "Don't worry about that! Hephaestus' got it covered! Rao's not going anywhere!"

()

While the majority of them were fighting Rao, Zeus, Hades, L'Zoril and Athena were on Mount Olympus, wondering just how the _hell _they were going to get to Rao. Obviously the other's attempts weren't working and according to the God of the Underworld, the strand Bruce was hanging on was growing thinner by the second. They had to act fast but anything they did to get to Rao was going to harm Clark as well.

There didn't see to be a sliver of Clark in there. Before, they had seen the way he had stopped Rao from making him fry Luthor. But now...Rao was completely in control. Clark wasn't even _trying _to fight. Had the god managed to corrupt him?

No. Zeus refused to believe that. There had to be something _more _to what was going on.

There just had to be.

()

Their little tornado trap didn't work for long and soon it was Artemis' turn to play, and she quickly attacked, her blows hitting with harsh precision. Gashes appeared where her weapon struck skin, blood pouring out and mingling with the human's. Continued on forward, determined to drive him _back, _when Wonder Woman tackled her, cutting over her assault on the Kryptonian. They landed on the ground in a daze, leaving them open for retaliation.

Luckily though, Dionysus appeared just then and began distracting Rao long enough so they could scramble out of sight and gain their balance again.

"Are you _insane_?!" She yelled at the supposedly _Amazon. _"I almost _had _him--"

"Clark is still in there!" Wonder Woman interrupted, her eyes glaring harshly. "You were going to kill him!"

Artemis pursed her lips together. "You want your friend back? Then the alien must die."

"Death isn't an option." Diana hissed. "Either you accept that, or stay out of it."

()

"Artemis was close." Hades muttered, staring down at the scene with a frown. "Almost too close."

Time was running out and if they didn't do something _soon _then one of them was going to die. And like the little amazon had said...that wasn't an option.

L'Zoril sighed, shaking his head. "Whatever we do doesn't matter. If Kal-El isn't putting up a fight, then Rao is going to be able to take over again without a problem."

It was so _frustating_. They couldn't do _anything. _Couldn't attack Rao without hurting Clark _or _Bruce. Couldn't get Bruce away because Rao refused to let go of the human. Couldn't kick Rao _out _because he could just walk right back in.

What else _was _there?

Zeus let out a growl. "It's seven gods against one! _How can we be losing!?_"

()

J'onn ducked behind C'eridyall's shield in _just _the knick of time; 'Clark's' hand _brushing _against his cloak. It had been hard to run with Bruce in his arms but he'd _done it_. After Hera had _finally _managed to get Rao to drop him he wasn't going to waste the opportunity. Enraged, Rao started pounding at the barrier, causing the pink energy to flicker.

Gazed up at his goddess, seeking even now, for reassurance. She smiled weakly, trembling but still strong. "I'll hold it for as long as I can."

Nodding, he focused on his mate, more importantly, at his _arms_. Which were still bleeding. "What's causing this? The wounds should have stopped bleeding by now!"

C'eridyall bit her lip, pouring more energy into the shield. It was their only protection between them and _him. _It called for a lot of concentration but she managed to spare him a glance and what she saw nearly made her drop the barrier altogether.

()

"What about Morpheus?" Athena inquired softly, gaining the attention of the other three gods. The intensity of their stares was a tad overwhelming but she continued on with what she was saying, knowing that now was not the time for such thoughts. "We could use him to go inside Clark's subconscious. Find out why he's given up."

Hades hummed thoughtfully, bracing his fingertips against each other. "I'm not sure. What's to stop Rao from attacking us once we're on the inside?"

"Them." L'Zoril stated, pointing down to where the gods and leaguers were trying to get 'Kal-El' away from the shield. "He can't fight both them and us at the same time. Rao's not _that _good."

He started to fade into the dream realm. "I'll return once I've located him."

"Hurry. Seconds in that realm equals _minutes _in this one.", Zeus stated, turning to watch the scene unfold beneath them.

Had the situation not been so dire, Hades would have smirked. The Great Zeus relying on a _Martian _God?

()

"It's the bond," C'eridyall explained, keeping her eyes on 'Kal-El' and how he was fighting the others. She couldn't bare to look at her Child right now. Not when she needed to remain calm and _focused _on what she was doing... "It's punishment. What ever Rao did to him...Bruce must have felt some sort of pleasure. The bond realized it wasn't with you and...this is his punishment." She laid a consoling hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry."

J'onn's hold on Bruce tightened as he took in what she just said. He was silent for a only a second before saying, "How do I lift the punishment?"

At hearing _that, _she stumbled, the barrier flickering. "What? You want to..but..."

Locked eyes with his goddess and said without a _hint _of doubt, "Bruce wouldn't do that. He wouldn't..._cheat_."

He knew that now.

()

"I'm not sure if I can _do..._this." Morpheus said as he lead L'Zoril and Athena through his realm, making turns left and right in a seemingly endless manner. He _really _would have felt better if Zeus or Hades had accompanied them but the two brothers had opted to stay up in Mount Olympus in case something went wrong. They had faith in Athena though...

"I've never entered an alien's mind before. That's not _my_ territory." There was a hint of bitterness to his voice that the god didn't even try to hide; he wasn't the only one disgusted by Rao's actions, he was sure.

"His soul's more human than anything else." Athena pointed out. "I doubt you'll be having much of a problem."

It seemed she was right, for suddenly they were _in _Clark's mind. Not the center of it. No, that was where Rao was, and they _really _didn't want to battle him in Clark's mind. Who _knew _what type of damage that might cause?

That and Clark wasn't in the center. He was curled all the way in the back, trying to make himself impossibly small.

()

"You have to forgive him of his misdoings."

"There's nothing to forgive!"

"You don't know that. And neither does the bond."

()

_Do you love me? Am I good enough for you yet?_

_**Quiet. It's hard enough trying to concentrate without you adding to it.**_

Kal tried to make himself smaller, wanting to be as out of the way as possible. He didn't know anything. Didn't _remember _anything. There was a part of him that said his God was hurting people...people he cared very much about...but that part of him was _wrong_. Had to be.. His God loved him, he did! Why would he cause him so much pain? Why would he want to hurt those he loved? Those he wanted to protect?

_Because he hates you..._

No!

Had to love him. He _had _to.

Couldn't be hated. Couldn't. He would fix this. He would, he just needed to try harder. His God wanted him to be quiet. So he would. Wouldn't utter a single peep. Maybe if he did this one last thing, he'd finally be good enough. A long time passed and while he knew it would bug his God...he needed to know...

()

J'onn pressed his lips against Bruce, trying to relax and let the bond wash over them like he'd been instructed to. It wasn't _right_. He shouldn't _have _to forgive his mate for anything. If anyone was in the wrong, it was _him. _But C'eridyall had stated that the bleeding wouldn't stop unless he'd _forgiven _Bruce.

"I..I forgive you."

Nothing happened.

()

_Do you love me yet?_

_**No.**_

_Tell me how I can make you love me again._

_**Again? I've never loved you. **_

_Never?_

_**I never WANTED to love you.**_

Kal wanted to scream.

()

"The bond knows you don't mean it!" C'eridyall snapped, the barrier fading in it's color. But she couldn't make it bright again; she was almost out of energy. "J'onn if you plan on doing something you have have to do it _now_!"

Time was running out, he shouldn't be _worrying _over something like this, but there was nothing to _forgive. _So how was he...?

Trembling, he laced his fingers with Bruce's, trying hard to find _something _to say...

What came out wasn't all what he expected.

But it was the truth.

()

"_Clark..."_ Athena sighed as they finally came across the distraught Kryptonian, kneeling down next to his pale form. _"Clark...what are you doing?"_

She received a puzzled look. _"Clark? Who is that? I'm Kal. Kal of the House of El."_

"_Is that so?" _L'Zoril asked, tilting his head to the side. _"Do you truly believe that Kal-El is all that you are?"_

Kal didn't answer, to busy wondering about what was causing his God's latest bout of rage to come forth. It wasn't him was it? _"I'm sorry." _Maybe if he apologized for everything, his God would love him. _"I'm sorry..." _For everything? That didn't seem good enough but to list it all individually...he didn't even know where to begin...

He was a failure. Couldn't even apologize right.

"_I'm sorry." _Apologizing for failing to apologize? Pathetic. No wonder Rao hated him.

()

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry for turning your life upside down. I'm sorry I almost got you killed. I'm sorry for not giving you the benefit of the doubt. I'm sorry for hitting you. Twice. I'm sorry you're bleeding. I'm _sorry._" His voice was barely above a whisper and he wasn't sure if it would even _count. _According to C'eridyall, he was supposed to be granting Bruce forgiveness, not apologizing. But it was the only thing he could think of. Bruce didn't _have _anything to be sorry for.

J'onn, however, did. So he poured his soul into those words, trying hard to convey to the bond that he wasn't feeling _betrayed _or _angry. _He wasn't in _love _with his mate, no, but he certainly didn't feel hatred.

He could never _hate _Bruce.

The bleeding didn't stop and he held his mate tighter, refusing to let go even as the barrier fell and Rao charged at them. He wasn't going to leave Bruce. Not this time.

()

"_Clark, listen to yourself!" _Athena pleaded, trying to make him see reason. _"It's Rao! He doesn't care!"_

He didn't answer her.

"_He understands that._" L'Zoril spoke up, eyes unusually soft. _"He just can't accept it."_

()

"**LET GO OF HIM YOU **_**THING**_**!**"

Heat beams tore through J'onn's arm, making him cry out in pain.

But he didn't let go.

()

When Kal was little, before he came into his superpowers, he was teased and bullied quite a lot.

And when ever he would ask his Ma' why they didn't like him, she would say that there was over a million people on the planet and so what if a few people didn't like him? He had many more people to go through! One of them _had _to want to be his friend! He just had to look a little harder for them, is all.

True, there _were _many people on the planet.

But there was only _one _Rao.

He didn't have anyone else to love him.

Without Rao he was alone...

His God was all he had.

()

It was getting harder to hold on to consciousness. His world was getting fuzzy around the edges, but still J'onn fought to hold on. He couldn't let Rao have Bruce. Bruce was _his. _He'd failed his mate enough times in the past; he wasn't going to do it again. No. Couldn't let go.

Bruce was his.

His mate.

His _friend_.

And he was going to protect him.

Even if it cost J'onn his life.

He was so caught up in the pain that he never realized that Bruce had stopped bleeding several minutes ago.

()

"_He's not all you have!" _Athena shook Clark harshly, wanting him to _see _how wrong he was. That he had people who loved and _cared _for him. He didn't _need _Rao. _"What do you care if he hates you?! You've never cared before!"_

L'Zoril took a step back to assess the situation, trying hard to think about _when _Clark had snapped. What had caused him to depend so much on _Rao _of all the gods? Rao didn't care. He _obviously _hated--

Memories flashed through his mind.

_'...if he's so evil why did he come back?! Why would he--'_

_'Because he hates you.' Hermes stated quietly, his usual cheerful demeanor gone. 'He left because he couldn't handle his destiny. When Krypton exploded he thought his problems were solved. Then, turns out that not all his children were dead. He feels everything. Your pain, happiness, misery, anger, wants, needs, accomplishments, crushes...and he hates it...'_

_'What do you care if he hates you?! You've never cared before!'_

The answer came to him and he was tempted to marvel at it's simplicity. _"He didn't __**know **__before."_

The Goddess of Wisdom turned around to face him, her eyes questioning. _"What does that...?"_

"_You thought he would handle the scorn of his god well. He didn't. Rao is the only god he has. It's the bond between them that's making him act like this."_

She sat down next to Clark, wondering what she could possibly say now that everything was so screwed up. _"You..."_

There was nothing she _could _say, really...

()

For the longest time the only thing Bruce had been aware of was pain. It seemed to stretch on for ever, clawing at his soul and raking harshly at his mind. That and the blood dripping down his skin. It burned like acid all the way down to his very _bones. _Tried to hold on, thinking that eventually the pain would level off and it would become bearable...but it _didn't. _It was never the same, always different and attacking him in places he never knew _existed. _

Wasn't aware of anything else. Until J'onn's words reached his ears.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry for turning your life upside down. I'm sorry I almost got you killed. I'm sorry for not giving you the benefit of the doubt. I'm sorry for hitting you. Twice. I'm sorry you're bleeding. I'm _sorry._"

_Idiot. _Did J'onn honestly think he had to apologize for all that? The slapping thing, yes, Bruce felt he was owed an apology there but the other things? J'onn didn't _almost _kill him. That was a result of the heat. There was nothing the Martian could do about it. It had been _his _choice to let the Martian Gods strengthen the bond between them. Yes his life was a bit hectic but he couldn't _blame _J'onn seeing how it had been his choice to accept this..._mating_...thing.

The pain was dying down and he was relieved but he didn't linger on the feeling, because he was now aware of what was going on. J'onn was still holding him, trying to protect him from Rao's blows. Which the god was giving in full strength. Took in the gashes on J'onn's body, the faded look in those golden eyes and felt his frustration grow. _Idiot! _Growling, he gathered up what little strength he had left and maneuvered it to where he was the one on the receiving end of Rao's attack. J'onn wasn't letting go and he couldn't let the Martian take anymore hits.

He could handle it. J'onn couldn't.

()

They sat there for the longest time, not knowing what to say to make things right again. L'Zoril was right; Rao _was _the only god Clark had. It had been a mistake to let Hermes say what he did after all that had happened to the poor alien. He wasn't able to handle it at _all. _Clark was acting like a little kid: lost, frightened and so desperately wanting to be loved. But Rao wasn't going to ever love him; he was a selfish being and would always think of himself first before others.

_'You **knew** that Rao was there. You **knew** that he was planning something. So why, **why** didn't you warn us? Warn **them**?'_

_The King of the Gods walked away from the scene, slumping down into his thrown with a defeated air about him. 'I didn't...think he was going to do anything of this extent.' He croaked. '...I didn't want...Kal-El to know of his return.'_

"_Zeus cares." _She said softly, hoping that he wasn't too far gone to hear her words. _"He didn't want you to know about Rao's return, because he didn't want you to get hurt." _

Dejected blue eyes looked into hers and she wanted to cry at how _broken _they looked. _"But Rao--"_

"_Rao doesn't matter." _He _had _to understand this part. _"Zeus has been there since you first arrived here on earth, watching you grow up into a strong individual. He **cares** about you. All of you. Clark, Kal and Superman. He loves you like you're his own."_

Kal so wanted to believe her but there was a part of him that just _couldn't _let it go. _"Why doesn't he love me?" _It was so pathetic but he _needed _to know what he did wrong. Maybe if he fixed it then--

"_You can't fix it, Clark." _L'Zoril stated quietly. _"Rao isn't able to love anyone but himself. He was given a destiny he didn't want and he's been running from it ever since. He's never going to love you." _His hand reached out, gently wiping away the tears that were falling. _"It's not your fault, you did nothing wrong. You can't fix it, can't change it but you can **accept** it. Rao may not love you, but Zeus does."_

Kal knew what they were asking of him. They wanted him to _reject _Rao. To kick him out. But if he did that...the bond would be broken. And there would be nothing there. Just an empty hole...and then he really _would _be alone.

_'Rao may not love you, but Zeus does.' _

Maybe...maybe Zeus would be willing...to fill that spot...maybe he wouldn't have to be alone at all...

()

Zeus was so involved in his pacing and observing the battle that he almost didn't feel the tentative soul reaching out towards him. It wasn't unusual. When unique souls first entered the world, they reached out for a god to favor them. It differed every time, usually based on what the soul's needs were. They all had connections to each soul on earth but the ones that they favored were different. The bond was more..._intense. _Usually favoring was reserved for those souls who were going to leave their mark on the world.

Subconsciously, he observed the soul reaching for him, trying to see if it was worthy of being his favorite. What he _felt _actually made him fall over in shock.

_Clark?! _

But that...that wasn't..._possible..._Clark already had a god! Yes it was Athena and L'Zoril's mission to get him to _reject_ Rao but...once someone rejected their god, that was it. No one had ever _chosen _another god before. It just...wasn't...

The soul started to shy away and Zeus quickly latched onto it, trying to be as soothing as possible. He didn't really know _how _but...there was no way he could deny _Clark_. Clark, the same little boy who had actually _smiled _at him when he had peeked into the rocket all those years ago, wondering what was going on. Who, after discovering his powers, refused to take retribution on the kids who had bullied him for years, afraid of hurting them. The one who did just as much _good _as Clark Kent as he did Superman, with his articles that brought dark issues to the light, making the public see just _what _was going on.

Deny _Clark? Clark **Kent**? Kal-El? Superman? _

Never.

_I would be **honored** to call you my Child, Clark._

()

'Clark's' attacks came to a screeching halt, making all of them on edge, wondering what the mad god was planning on doing next. It was never a good thing when a bad guy went _still. _Usually that meant that they had noticed a weakness in their attack and was getting ready to strike. Would he try to leave the cave? Had there been a flaw in Hephaestus' wards? They'd said that the lame god was a genius when it came to such things but...

Now Green Lantern was starting to wonder.

They were tense, wound up so tightly and ready to spring at the _slightest _movement. But 'Clark' just stood ridiculously _still, _his fist still raised up, ready to strike Bruce once more. The silence was deafening. Until 'Clark' suddenly released his hold on Bruce and fell to the ground, trembling fiercely. "Oh...oh _god..._Bruce..._J'onn..._"

At hearing the stricken tone in his voice, Flash relaxed, letting out a breath he hadn't even been aware he'd been holding in. "You're back."

Clark, the _real _Clark, didn't reply, his eyes still trained on the battered forms of his teammates in front of him. _I...I did...__**this**__...I let Rao...__**god**__..._his throat tightened painfully. _I...I should leave. _Went to fly away, only to be yanked back. Looked down and saw a bloody hand clenching the fabric of his cape in a death grip.

"If...you..._leave_..." Bruce bit out, his voice heavy with pain and exhaustion. "...going to...find the...biggest stash of Kryptonite...and..._kill you..._"

He was _serious_, Clark knew him well enough to realize that but...he couldn't...it wasn't... "Bruce...I...let Rao...I can't..."

Tried to pull away but the grip was _strong _and refusing to let go, no matter how hard he pulled. "BRUCE--"

A hand landed on his shoulder, making him look up and he was shocked to see Wally, not Flash, but _Wally, _staring at him. "Running away isn't going to change what happened."

His shoulders slumped with defeat as he looked around at the cave, mourning the destruction he'd caused. The penny was half-way melted, the computer was nothing but a bruised pile of metal and never_mind _the state the Batmobile was in...or the condition of his teammates. Lantern's nose looked like it was broken, and he was nursing his left side. Flash had two nice black eyes, along with a swollen lip and a still-bleeding head-wound. Wonder Woman was cradling her wrist and trying to keep her weight off her knee, which he could tell via x-ray was badly sprained. Hawk Girl had a few bruised ribs, along with a mild concussion, probably from when he'd slugged her as payback for the mace-to-the-head thing.

J'onn had several burn marks on him from when he'd fired his heat beams at the Martian, along with bruises and gashes from trying to protect his mate. The biggest wound was _very _close to his left eye and he really hoped that he hadn't caused any permanent damage. Bruce had two _nasty _looking gashes on both his arms and he was _covered _in blood that had yet to dry, along with three broken ribs and a few burns of his own.

Clark had caused everyone so much pain...he didn't even know where to _begin _to make things right again.

"I'm..."

What could he possibly say? There was no way he could fix all that had happened.

_It's not your fault; you did nothing wrong. You can't fix it, can't change it but you can **accept** it._

"I'm sorry.", He whispered, because really, that was all he could do.

J'onn lifted his head and offered what he hoped was a reassuring smile. "Apology accepted."

And it really was.

()

I hope the uh...lust scene with...Bruce and Clark/Rao wasn't TOO bad...I SUCK at writing that type of stuff. I gave it my best... / so shuffit. XD and review! Two chapters in one! Two LONG chapters in one! I think I deserve a review! Or twelve! XD


	17. The Unnamable One Steps In

Mates: The Sequel

Chapter 17

()

They were in the medical wing again.

Due to him.

Again.

Clark had to fight back a huge wave of guilt as he helped his teammates recover. There were a few cuts on his arms also, but he felt like that was the _least _he deserved. In all actuality he deserved ten times worse for allowing Rao to do _this _to his friends.

The bond no longer tied him to the god and he felt quite foolish as he recalled cowering in his mind and begging to be loved. He also remembered reaching out, asking Zeus something...and he was sure that his answer had been yes but...

He couldn't remember what the question had been about...

Oddly enough, now that the bond was gone, he didn't feel empty. Or even _depressed. _On the contrary, he felt..._free_. Like he could breathe and relax for the first time in forever. It was such a weird feeling but...not an uncomfortable one.

"Is it just me or have we been spending a lot of time in this part of the tower lately?" Flash piped up, raising a hand to lightly touch at the bruised skin beneath his eyes. The words were said in a humorous tone but they didn't help ease Clark's guilt _at all. _

He paused in wrapping Diana's knee, his hands trembling slightly as memories of the fight flared through his mind.

Ramming his fist against Hawk Girl's head. The smell of burning flesh has his heat beams made contact with J'onn's skin. Flash going flying when he landed a kick on the speedster to stop his tornado attack...

It wasn't right...it _wasn't_...he didn't...would _never..._

But he had.

Rao had taken control of his body.

And eager for the god's love, he had let him.

That knowledge was almost enough to send him flying out of the tower and towards the fortress, or maybe out of the galaxy altogether. Except Bruce's words were still echoing in his head.

"_If...you...**leave**...going to...find the...biggest stash of Kryptonite...and...**kill you**..."_

Bruce would do it too. Actually, if he thought about it, he wouldn't be really all that surprised if the other leaguers ended up helping the bat...

Aside from the screeching of his conscience, there was also a load of embarrassment. Especially whenever he looked over at Bruce. Because then he'd remember how his hands had trailed over the man's skin...how his back had arched when his tongue had ran along that lean neck...those _lips_...and his face would turn unbelievably red. Every time. One would think that after a while the humiliation would fade but...no.

It only seemed to get worse.

Even more so when he realized that Bruce had yet to say anything else to him after the threatening to kill him thing...though he tried not to take it personally...seeing how the human wasn't talking to anyone else either...

But it was hard _not _to take offense, when his friend wouldn't even look his way. Clark felt his misery increase as time wore on and the only one Bruce interacted with was J'onn. It was understandable, with the Martian being his mate and all...and given the fact that he'd just tried to..._rape_...him...but the thought that the rocky relationship between them was now _ruined_ because of Rao's doings...it was enough to make him sick to his stomach.

Rao had done this.

And he'd **let** him.

_Oh **god**..._

Saw Bruce flinch beside him and swallowed thickly, trying hard to contain the emotions he was feeling right now. He didn't want to cause his friend any more pain than he already had but...he just couldn't stop the thoughts going through his head right now. For the second time he'd nearly killed his teammates. He was supposed to _protect _them. Not slam them into cars or fire heat beams or...

Movement in the corner of his eye caused him to jerk out of his thoughts and alerted him to the fact that Bruce was now heading towards the exit.

"Bruce, you are not yet fully healed." J'onn was protesting. "We should remain in contact for another..." He trailed off at seeing his mate tremble slightly.

"I can't...stay here...J'onn..." Came the whisper and Clark's guilt increased even more, knowing it was because of him. Because of the emotions he was projecting...Bruce _needed _to stay in the medical wing. If it bothered him that much, he'd be the one to leave. Stood up and walked to Bruce, unconsciously reaching a hand out to place on his shoulder and say _"I'll leave the tower then, Bruce. You stay and heal."_.

Except he never got that far, because the second his hand had neared the human, he had stumbled backwards in an uncharacteristic show of..._fear_, as he snarled, "**Do **_**not **_**touch me**!"

The utter loathing in those words made Clark take a step back, watching as his friend stormed away, probably towards the teleporter to go down to the manor. His mind numb, he turned back and sat down on one of the empty beds, Bruce's words still ringing in his ears.

_**Do not touch me!**_

He closed his eyes against the memory, his shoulders sagging in defeat. _When did I become the enemy? _

The answer came to him and for the first time he knew what it truly meant to hate someone.

_Rao._

()

He stared down at Earth, trying hard to continue on and fly far away from this galaxy, like he had intended upon doing the second the bond had been broken. His body refused to obey him however, choosing to instead gaze down at the fragile planet. Rao didn't understand _why _he couldn't leave. He didn't feel guilty about what he'd done. Nor did he feel pleased. In fact, he didn't feel anything.

No sadness, anger, humor, _love_...no weak _mortal _emotions that had plagued him for as long as he could remember.

The bond was truly broken between him and Kal-El.

Silence was the only thing he heard in his mind. No doubts or prayers...just blissful silence.

It was everything he had imagined it to be.

So why couldn't he leave?

"What did you do to Ares?"

The sudden appearance of the blond goddess had him frowning in irritation. Why was she _here_? He wasn't on Earth, wasn't watching over Kal-El anymore. In fact he'd been in the middle of _leaving_. Zeus had claim to Earth, Rao couldn't deny that but he wasn't _on _Earth, was he? _No_ he wasn't.

So the whole...harassing him thing...was really uncalled for.

"Don't make me ask again."

_Ares...ah. The God of War. _Reminder of their shortly-lived battle made him relax as fond memories surfaced. The _look _on the arrogant god's face as the sword pierced his stomach..._priceless. _

It was tempting to relive the memory. Rao wondered what type of sound Aphrodite would make while dying for a few seconds before shaking his head. Killing Ares had taken a _lot _of energy and he had no desire to overexert himself. Even if it did mean that he'd have to answer the annoying goddess.

"I killed him."

Telling Aphrodite of Ares' demise was almost as good as killing her, Rao discovered, taking pleasure at the emotions that played on her face. "You...you...how...that's impossible!"

The sickening _smirk _that answered the goddess had her quickly backing away as a sword appeared in his hand. "Oh really? You wish me to prove myself?"

Two other beings appeared in front of her and Rao frowned, not recognizing them. Their energy levels suggested that they were immortal like he was but...they looked more like that green _thing_. The one that had refused to let _go _of the human...

_That atrocious thing has **gods**?_ He was repulsed but realized that not _all _aliens could look as handsome as Kal-El.

"You got what you wanted." One of them spoke up and Rao saw that it was a male. "Leave."

"Suppose I say _no_?" He moved forward, his inner beast purring in anticipation for the battle that was sure to come. "Do you intend on _making _me?"

Aphrodite teleported away, probably to get _Zeus_ but Rao didn't care. Let her get the _King_. He took out Ares he could take him out too. Never mind the energy required; he'd destroy them _all. _Kill the little Earth Gods and watch as the idiotic humans ran around and destroyed themselves. Oh it would be so much _fun..._

Energy crackled around Rao, setting H'ronmeer and L'Zoril on edge as the mad god started to chant. The words spilling from his lips were ancient and they didn't understand their meaning but it was causing _something _to shift in them, something to change and suddenly they were aware of how they couldn't _move_, even with their lives on the line and Rao charging at them with the intent to _kill_. H'ronmeer had closed his eyes, briefly saying goodbye to C'eridyall and apologizing for all that he'd put her through...

Except Rao never made it to them.

()

When Rao had first come to Earth, He hadn't known what to think. He wasn't around when Rao had visited last time, and he really had no clue what to expect. Zeus hadn't seemed worried though if he hadn't alerted the Justice League to the god's presence, so He had decided to trust in the King's judgment. Apparently he had been horribly _wrong _to do so, when Rao had taken over Clark's mind and had made his Child _scream _in pain...

And had attacked _Bruce _as well...

J'onn was his _only _Child.

Bruce was his Child's mate.

So by definition Bruce was under his protection as well.

Needless to say he'd been _enraged _at the nerve of the god. But then he had found out _why _Zeus had chose to keep Rao's return to himself. That hadn't made him any happier. The _only _thing that managed to pacify his anger had been that the King had managed to fix things _finally _by taking guard over the Justice League. He'd been annoyed though when they had slacked off over guarding Bruce but had made up for it by guarding the human Himself.

He was sure not to alert the human of His presence, aware that he liked his privacy, but He hadn't intended on turning away for a second.

Until He'd felt a certain spell being said. An ancient one that should have remained lost to time, one which was being uttered by a foolish god who had no _idea _of what it would cause. And had teleported to Rao, determined to put a _stop _to whatever it was he was planning...

But had been too late to save Ares.

For the first time since coming into existence he truly felt _floored_ as he wondered what the God of War's death would mean to the planet, if not the _universe. _Where _did _a god go upon dying? It was a question that desperately needed an answer and so He had gone searching, all the while keeping aware to what C'eridyall, H'ronmeer and L'Zoril were doing, prepared to interrupt if needed. Thankfully things hadn't gotten that bad and they managed to thwart Rao while He dug up some answers on what had happened to Ares.

It was only a theory at best and he needed more information but at least things didn't look _completely _helpless.

The bond between Kal-El and Rao was broken. J'onn was alive, as was Bruce.

He'd been prepared to let the god _leave. _

Except Rao had started to attack H'ronmeer and L'Zoril, with the intent to kill them and then all the other Earth Gods. An anger like no other had surged through Him, causing Him to teleport Rao to the same dimension He was in, his energy swirling as He started to take on a humanoid figure.

Rao had almost _killed _his Child.

Rao had tried to _taint _the sacred bond between J'onn and Bruce.

Rao had _killed _Ares, thereby disrupting the balance.

Rao had _tried to kill H'ronmeer and L'Zoril. _

Locked _eyes _with the _god _and had there been a flash of fear in those cold orbs maybe His anger would have died down. But there had been none. Just a cocky self-assurance that had him racing forward and slamming into Rao with a snarl.

"You are a disgrace!" His voice thundered as He traded blows, landing several on the _god _but getting none in return. "You bring shame to all gods everywhere! Have you no _idea _what damage you've caused?!"

Pinned Rao down, his energy biting into the god and making him _writhe _in pain.

"I never asked for this!" Came the snarl and it made him _boil _with fury at the selfishness those words held. He'd just caused so much to come undone and all he cared about was himself. He didn't _deserve _immortality.

"You don't want this?" He asked, taking pleasure as He _finally _saw apprehension showing in those eyes. "Allow me to take it away from you."

Rao started chanting again and was puzzled when the strange _being _in front of him was still able to move. That wasn't possible. The spell was wrote specifically to affect _gods _so...

The entity towered over him and Rao gulped as he saw his future in those eyes. Eyes that swirled with so much _energy... _"Wh—Who are you?!"

A cold smile, one that filled him with nothing but dread. "My name is unfit for one such as _yourself _to hear."

And then Rao only knew pain.

()

Bruce's reaction will be explained in the next chapter. I hope the fight between the Unnamable one and Rao wasn't too horrible...I kinda suck at action scenes too...;.; I'm sorry about the lull in updates, I'm kind of suffering though writer's block right now...and I keep getting distracted...it's a pain to write about the Unnamable one because...he has no name. So I have to just say 'He' and 'Him' and 'His' and it might get confusing... you have no idea how tempting it is to just call him 'Bob' and get it over with...


	18. Difficult Is What He Is

Mates: The Sequel

**Chapter 18**

_()_

The excruciating pain had died down but it hadn't left completely. It wasn't nearly as bad as it had been before but it left everything feeling raw, right down to his very bones. His skin felt like it had a very bad case of sunburn and the wounds on his arms kept pulsing painfully every time he _breathed. _Bruce certainly wasn't a stranger to pain but this was different, seeming to sink down into his mind and soul as well. He was too weak to shield his thoughts or try to control his senses so he was picking up _everything _with agonizing clarity.

Everything _hurt. _

Hearing, seeing, breathing..._existing..._

J'onn.

His mate's presence usually felt _soothing. _Warm and soft, wrapping around his frayed nerves and helping him to relax. But now it seemed like the longer they touched the more his skin _burned _and suddenly he was all to aware of how _small _yet _crowded _the medical wing was.

People. Hawk Girl. Green Lantern. Flash. Superman. _J'onn. _

Harsh lights. Glaring at him, making spots appear in his vision.

Sounds ringing in his ears. Beeping machines. Heart Beats.

And _smells. _Strong smells, making him nauseous and dizzy as the metallic scent of _blood _reached his nose.

Too much. Too much too muchtoomuchtoomuch—no. _No. _He could do this. He _would _control his body. Just _concentrate._

_Rao did this...and I **let **him...Oh **god**..._

Guilt washed over Bruce and he flinched as J'onn went from soothing to _hot. _Everything felt _hot. _He was burning up—_no. _Concentrate. J'onn was soothing. J'onn was supposed to _heal _him. He just had to relax and let the bond--

_I'm supposed to protect them! Not slam them into cars or-or fire **heat beams** or..._

**He couldn't breathe. **Couldn't get enough air into his lungs. Too _much. _There was no escape!

Mind racing, he shot up and made to walk forward to the exit, J'onn's voice halting him in his steps. "Bruce, you are not yet fully healed. We need to remain in contact--"

_Remain in contact?! _Nonononono couldn't do that. J'onn _burned. _Everything was burning. Couldn't breathe here. He had to _leave. _"I can't...stay here...J'onn..."

If he stayed any longer he was going to go _insane. _

Was almost out the door when _Clark _went to _touch him_.

Clark.

Who was radiating such _guilt_, _shame, and embarrassment. _Whose heart was pounding unbelievably loud in his chest. Too loud.

"**Do **_**not **_**touch me!**" He snarled, stumbling back to avoid that _hand, _knowing how close to the edge he was going and he _couldn't feel anymore. _Not right now.

Wasn't aware of anything else until he was suddenly in the cave, his stomach reeling from the teleportation. His sight had left him some time during the 'ride' over but he _knew _where he was. Because he could _hear _them.

The _bats. _

Their little heart beats and fluttering of their wings. Could _smell _them too.

Could smell the darkness.

_Didn't know darkness had a smell_, Bruce thought, his voice sounding shrill inside his mind. Didn't have any time to wonder about _that_ because someone was shouting his name. Loudly. Coming towards him, their footsteps thundering in his ears...

"Bruce!"

Coming towards him with the intent to **touch**...

_Oh **god**..._

"ALFRED!!"

_Too loud. _

_Don't touch. Don't._ Touching meant feeling. He couldn't feel anymore. Couldn't _handle _anymore.

Soft yet firm hands were suddenly on Bruce's skin and he shrank away, shaking his head as he tried to convey that they couldn't _touch. _The hands were persistent though and he braced himself for the impact of emotions that were _sure _to follow...

And was startled when nothing happened.

There was no shock or pity. No guilt, depression or _anger. _Just concern and...

_Love?_

Yes, there was no mistaking that emotion.

It wrapped around his tortured mind, filling his soul with a warmth that chased away the pain and gave him his sight back. Let the images he was seeing come into focus before locking eyes with Alfred and giving him a shaky smile.

"Alfred."

The butler went from being relieved to exasperated as he exclaimed, "Master Bruce, might I inquire as to _why _you are _bleeding_?"

Blinking, he looked down and saw that the wounds had indeed opened again. But the blood didn't burn like last time. It was just blood. The smell didn't make him nauseous. He could hear the bats, but not in a painfully loud way like before.

He had control again.

In some weird, bizarre way...Alfred had helped _heal _him.

"How do you do it, Alfred?" Bruce croaked in lieu of an answer, getting a raised eyebrow in return.

"Do what?"

"Weird...butler..." His thoughts were starting to grow fuzzy, his eyelids heavy. "...magic...thing...you do..."

"Years of practice." Came the dry answer and he nodded, oblivious to the sarcasm behind the words as he drifted off into unconsciousness.

()

The gashes were _deep, _trailing around _both _Bruce's arms in a strange pattern that had Dick wondering not for the first time just _what _had happened while they had been out patrolling Gotham. Only he couldn't really _ask _because Bruce wasn't so much as _stirring. _Given what he knew about the man's senses and the fact that there were two needles repeatedly going into his skin, Bruce had to have been _exhausted. _

He didn't know what had happened. When they'd gotten back from patrol they hadn't seen any sign of Bruce but had just chalked it up to something happening with the League. Then Bruce had just appeared in the cave, his skin an almost ashy gray in color and on the verge of having a panic attack. Had in fact started to hyperventilate when Dick had finally had the sense to call for Alfred. He'd felt immediately foolish for doing so at first. He was an adult! He should be able to handle this!

But Bruce had seemed to be very close to _breaking_ and that wasn't...he hadn't known what to _do. _So he'd fallen back on old habits and had yelled for the butler's assistance. Which had turned out to be just what was _needed. _Dick had understood Bruce's question very well. Alfred was..._Alfred. _The things he managed to _do_ sometimes just amazed him. Like calming down a nearly-hysterical Bat...in mere _seconds. _

Dick didn't know _how _but he was immensely grateful, as he continued stitching up the gash on his mentor's left arm. The gashes were going to leave _quite _a scar, that was for sure...

"Is he going to be okay?" He asked quietly, keeping a critical eye on Bruce's form, prepared to stop talking the _second _there was a sign of distress.

Alfred nodded, "I believe so, yes. However, I do think I'll be preparing some dishes once we're done here, for when Master Bruce awakens. Most likely he'll be quite famished."

Even though the situation was quite serious...Dick couldn't help but snicker. What _would _Bruce do without the butler's help? Alfred did everything. Picked out his clothes, cooked, patched him back together, woke him up in the mornings...

_So spoiled._

"Oh, that reminds me Master Dick. There's chocolate cake in the kitchen for you..."

At hearing _that, _he perked up, mouth already _watering _at the thought of Alfred's chocolate cake. It had gooey chocolate bits in the bread and was so _moist--_

"...right after you go _in _your bathroom and clean _up _that mess you left in there last night. Just because I pick up after you doesn't give you the excuse to be a _slob_, Master Dick."

He slumped over, pouting. Of course there was a catch. Whenever Alfred threw in cake there was _always _a catch. When was he going to learn?! "It's not _my _fault it _rained _last night--"

"Yet it _is _your fault for forgetting to use the utilities in the cave, is it not?"

"I was tired!" Dick protested, fighting to keep his voice down once he remembered Bruce was still sleeping. And he _didn't _want a repeat of last time. "I had to break up _three _gang fights. Three! And then Tim _fell _and when I go to help him, what does he do?! PULLS—pulls me down with him. Did you check his bathroom?" He didn't wait to hear the answer, adding in an irritated tone, "Yeah of course you did. No mud, right? That's because mud doesn't _stick _to Tim. Oh no it just slides right off him because Tim's an _angel. _Mud wouldn't _dare _stick to _him. _But me? It sticks _everywhere. _And I do mean _**everywhere.**_"

Silence.

_Did he give up? _

Looking up from his work, he narrowed his eyes upon realizing that Alfred was staring at him with an amused look on his face. "WHAT?"

"You sound just like Master Bruce did when he was younger..."

Dick scowled at the comparison. "No. Bruce is _spoiled. _I'm _mature_."

"So since you admit that you are a mature adult, I take it that you will indeed be cleaning up your mess?"

He shifted uneasily, mentally cursing himself for falling into the butler's trap. _Stupid! _How could he have let his guard down like that?! He couldn't say no, or else he would be admitting that he _was _spoiled like Bruce. Well...at least he'd get cake...that was something, right?

Sighing, he nodded and started up the stairs, pausing as something occurred to him. "Alfred?"

"Yes?"

"...I get milk too right?"

Alfred's lips twitched. "But of course, Master Dick."

"Cool."

()

Right at that moment Bruce felt perfectly balanced. He'd found his center. It had taken a while, with everything swarming around him but he'd _found _it. And had held onto it, allowing his mind to go completely blank and his body to relax. It was a pleasant feeling; the silence that followed. For the first time in months he felt almost like his old self again. Had it really been so long since he'd last meditated?

He'd missed this...

A trickle of time seemed to pass by. Whether the trickle equaled hours or minutes, Bruce didn't know. Nor did he care. He had more pressing matters to think about and it had been so _long _since his mind had been clear of all the clutter and pain...and as more trickles passed it was harder to hold onto his center. It didn't used to be so hard...

Determined, he tried to concentrate even harder. He had to do this _now _when he could think without _feeling _too much of everything.

_J'onn Jonzz. _

The Last Martian.

His _mate. _

Was it worth continuing this...relationship...between them?

Even with his mind clear it seemed impossible to tell. Truth was he didn't _know _anything about J'onn. There weren't any strange little quirks the Martian had that he found annoying or _cute_. No little phrases or words that had been spoken between them that made his heart melt or flutter. No fond memories. Nothing. There was _nothing. _

_Not entirely true. The sex was **fantastic**--_

_**Regardless of how good the sex was, it still doesn't help me out any. **_

_You wanted fond memories. You now have two. See? I helped._

_**Very well, I'm sexually attracted to J'onn. However, that's not what this is about. This is about whether or not it's worth it--**_

_WRONG. This is about you trying to make a decision when you lack the sufficient data required. _

_**Explain. **_

_There's no quirks to annoy or amuse you because you've yet to really spend **time **with the Martian. You don't know anything **about **him. Not his past, his likes or dislikes. _

_**I need to know whether or not to--**_

_You want to know if you should pursue a relationship with the Martian based on all that has happened recently. But what are you going to draw your conclusions **from**? Is he possessive? Jealous? What does he do that annoys you? What does he do that pleases you? _

_**I--**_

_If you try to come to an answer with what you know now most likely it will be the **wrong **one. _

_**Which means we're back at square one, a square that I like to call the 'WHAT DO I DO' square.**_

_Not necessarily. You just need to gather more data. _

_**My question was 'Should I pursue a relationship with J'onn'. There's only two answers. Yes or no. **_

_Whatever happened to 'maybe'?_

Slowly, Bruce opened his eyes and sighed. Well...he had his answer.

Now he just had to figure out a way to tell J'onn.

()

"_After your shift, come down to the manor. We need to talk."_

Two sentences, said in an emotionless tone that gave _nothing _away. Yet those simple words were driving J'onn up the wall as he sat through monitor duty, trying hard to stop counting the seconds. But it was so _hard _especially when he wasn't quite sure where he and his mate stood. Couldn't Bruce have said more? Like _'we need to talk about continuing our relationship'_? Or maybe _'we need to talk about you staying far far away from me'. _Even that would have been better than just '_we need to talk.'_

_We need to talk. _

He _hated _the way those words sounded.

And the more times the phrase kept circling through his head the more things it seemed to say.

Truth was he _had _almost killed Bruce. The bond had punished his mate unfairly and as a result he would forever have those scars on his arms...his senses were going haywire and he was feeling too much. Fact of the matter was he'd caused nothing but trouble for the human and there was really no reason for Bruce to _want _to continue this...relationship...thing...that was between them. Even if they _were _mated to each other.

He was going to go to the manor and end up hearing a polite but cold speech about how they should practice distance...indefinitely.

It was almost enough to cause a cold sweat to break out on his skin and he was reminded of how miserable he'd felt during the Heat. His shift had _finally _ended and after giving Flash the customary status report he had stood in front of the teleporter for the longest time, trying to get up the nerve to step into it. If he did he'd have to face Bruce. Batman. His _mate_. And the decision _of _his mate, which, no matter how hard he looked at it, couldn't mean anything good.

But if he didn't then...he would _die. _Because Bruce would _kill _him. And probably in a very painful way too. _But _if he died then he wouldn't have to face him. _Then again _if Bruce found out that's why he chose the 'death' option, he'd probably find a way to bring him back. Then he'd have died for nothing...

Maybe he could choose option 'c'. Neither. Run far far away. Hide. No, it wasn't a very courageous idea but...he really liked option C. He was his own person; just because his mate _demanded _that he show up didn't mean he _had _to...

Had made to move _away _from the teleporter when he felt a pressure on his back and was suddenly _shoved _forward. By Flash...who was supposed to be his friend. His teammate. But now he'd been _betrayed_. By the speedster, who always seemed so innocent...but it was always the innocent ones, wasn't it?

Aware that he as pouting, J'onn forced his thoughts away Flash and continued on following the butler, who had been there waiting for him in the cave. So _of course _he had to follow Alfred. Couldn't say no. And Bruce _knew _that.

**Evil. His mate was _evil. _**

"Is the dinning room to your liking, Master J'onn?"

The question jarred the alien from his thoughts and he went to answer when it occurred to him that perhaps he should _observe _how the room looked before--

_Wow._

It was..._beautiful. _Lights softly dimmed down. Flowers arranged in a tasteful way that gave off a nice mellow scent and complimented the elegant layout of the spacious room. Along with one very handsome Bruce Wayne who was dressed in a black tux with a navy undershirt and silver tie...

The same Bruce Wayne that had planted a _kiss _on his hand and was now guiding him to a chair. Dumbfounded, he chose to follow the human's lead, unable to take his eyes off of the charismatic man. He didn't understand. It didn't _seem _like he was being rejected...

Allowed himself to unwind slightly and managed to even enjoy the food Alfred had prepared. Which was _delicious. _Creamy yet crunchy and no bad aftertaste either...the sun was just starting to peak through the curtains and _just _when J'onn was starting to think that _maybe _their morning date wouldn't end up being so bad--

"I don't love you J'onn."

Bruce decided to open his mouth.

At hearing those words he felt his temper start to rise in irritation. _He didn't love him. _Fine. That was just _fine. _Didn't want to continue the relationship. So _why _had Bruce decided to play with him? To give him _hope _that things would work out? Was it because of _pity_? Did Bruce feel _sorry _for him?

He didn't _need _the human's pity.

Deciding that it would be best if he left before saying something he might regret later, J'onn stood up and had made for the exit, with the intent to _leave_. Yet as he approached the door...a part of him noticed that it was closed. When seconds ago it had been opened. And sure enough when he went to tug on the handle he found that it was _locked. _

"Alfred is a genius." Bruce said in a tone that had him bristling. "Now do you want to hear what else I have to say or do you want to continue _assuming _things?"

Golden eyes narrowed. "You said--"

"I said I didn't love you J'onn." His mate interrupted, his voice heavy with exasperation. "I can't love you. I don't _know _you. You don't know me. We haven't even held a meaningful conversation. The only thing we've done is fucked." At seeing J'onn's eyes narrow further, he rolled his own, adding, "Fine. _Make love to each other. _Happy?!"

The Martian's eyes were practically _slits _as he stated, "I don't like your tone."

"Well I don't like _you._" Bruce snapped back, aggravated at how _wrong _this was all going. He was trying to be _nice _for a change but there J'onn went with his _assuming _--

"I can hear you."

He growled, "Well then you know how much of an _ass _you're being! Great. Saves me the trouble of having to explain it to you!"

Stepped forward towards the alien in a subconscious attempt at intimidation, his mood darkening when his mate copied the move.

"How much—I am the—you are the one who acts _charming _and then starts off the conversation with _I don't love you_. Who does that?!" J'onn _refused_ to believe that this was all his fault. It wasn't _possible. _Bruce was _evil. _So by default, half the blame was on him. If not more so.

"If you weren't so quick to jump to conclusions—"

"If you weren't so _difficult _then perhaps I wouldn't _jump _to conclusions!"

"_I'm _difficult?! You're a Martian!"

"And you're human!"

"Well you certainly didn't have a problem with my _humanity _when I was running my t--"

"_I don't love you?! _Who does that?! WHO!?"

"It's the truth!"

"You don't _do _that Bruce! You are supposed to _ease _into the truth like a _normal _human--"

"Well excuse me for not being as human as you!"

Some time during the shouting match they had edged closer, and by now they were standing toe-to-toe, their eyes attempting to burn _holes _into the each other. J'onn had opened his mouth, prepared to continue on with the yelling when Bruce's words sunk in.

_Well excuse me for not being as human as you!_

That...had been...

Entirely unexpected.

Truth be told he had been anticipating something else entirely. He'd expected something along the lines of _'Who are you to lecture me on being human?!' _or _'Because I'm really going to listen to a Martian!'. _But certainly not...

_Well excuse me for not being as human as you!_

"Do...do you really mean that?" J'onn whispered, Clark's words still ringing loud and clear in his mind.

"_You seem to forget that you yourself are an alien, Kal-El."_

"_**I'm more human than you'll ever be."**_

Bruce snorted, his temper still boiling. "Which part? All of it? Yes." He wondered which part had cut J'onn deepest. The Martian bit?

"The human part."

He raised an eyebrow. "Let me _see. _You jump to conclusions when you're angry. You love Chocos. You like sex." Another smirk. "Almost as much as you love Chocos. All very _human _things." A frown as his anger started to ebb away and he realized that J'onn didn't look _enraged _or even _hurt. _Instead he looked rather..._shocked. _"I think some would argue that you're more human than...me..."

Suddenly he was in a tight embrace and he went completely stiff, unsure on both what to do and what was going on. "J'onn...?"

"Thank you."

_Thank you_? That was weird...one would think that the alien would be annoyed at being compared to a human, but instead he looked like it was the greatest compliment. _What's going through your mind, J'onn? _

As if in answer, images flashed through his brain:

_"Superman...there may be something I --"_

_"No. No J'onn, you can't. He's a human. You're...what if you make things worse? You're an alien-- how could you possibly know anything about how to heal a human body?!"_

_J'onn stared at Clark for a few seconds, his eyes cold. "You seem to forget that you yourself are an alien, Kal-El."_

_"**I'm more human than you'll ****ever** **be.**"_

Bruce pinched the bridge of his nose, letting out an annoyed sigh. "You _believed _him? Clark's an idiot! And you _believed _him?"

That got him a smile as J'onn leaned in, closing the small distance between them and gently pressing his lips against Bruce's. He'd gone from being mesmerized, to angered and from that to _happiness. _What was it about _Bruce..._that just made him _feel _so much in such a short amount of time?

J'onn chuckled as the answer came to him. _It's...Bruce. Difficult is what he is._

His mate sighed, "You're an idiot, you know that?"

The smile he got in reply was absolutely stunning.

()

Thus marks the end of Mates: The Sequel. But fear not! More shall be coming soon! Just give me some time to catch up on my other stories first!


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